


Unbreakable Connection

by rainbowhuesoflife



Series: DIGITAL MONSTER Revitalize [1]
Category: Digimon - All Media Types
Genre: Adventure, Character Death, Friendship, Non-Graphic Violence, Original Character(s), Past Character Death, Science Fiction & Fantasy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-08
Updated: 2019-07-08
Packaged: 2020-06-24 13:36:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 31,167
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19724746
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rainbowhuesoflife/pseuds/rainbowhuesoflife
Summary: Nineteen years ago, six children were called to another world and tested before being sent on a mission to save it. They failed. Now, six adults are pulled into a continent divided by war. Each pair of monster and human hopes to forge their own path, but it is only when they come together that they can truly make a difference. / All original humans, no canon.





	1. Reunion

_I failed._

"Mer, no!"

_I thought I could prepare these children._

"He gave his life… To protect us."

_Train them, test them, help them grow. Build a team capable of protecting the world, as my siblings had done before me._

"Destini, look out!"

_But I could not prepare them for this._

"AUGGIE!"

_And I could not protect them._

"Where'd he go? Where'd he go?"

"Ellie, let's go!"

"Where is my brother?!"

_So I sent them back home, where I knew they could not follow. I couldn_ _'t bear to see any more of them harmed._

"AUGGIE!"

_I have failed you, my children._

_I only hope I can redeem myself someday._

\/\/\/\/\/

**1\. Reunion**

Up, down. Up, down. Up, down. The movement of the red yo-yo was all that she focused on. Until, of course, Ryu raised his beeping voice to let her know that he was hungry. Ellowin yanked the ancient toy up and caught it by wrapping her fingers around it, then reached down to the pouch at her waist, and the virtual pet hanging by a keychain from the pouch's strap. She pressed buttons on the small electronic device while footsteps approached from the left. Looking up, she saw a young man around her age walking across the parking lot. Seeing as how it was almost midnight, and the recreation center completely empty, there was no doubt that this was the person she was waiting for. His naturally blond locks were dyed a deep cerulean, but she knew it was him as soon as she saw his face.

"You showed."

"Of course," the reply came from the man, who rocked awkwardly on his heels and brushed his long blue hair out of his face. "How've you been, Ellie?"

"Don't call me that," she said, ignoring the question and gesturing for him to take a seat on the curb. She then went back to feeding her electronic child and, once he was satisfied, went back to playing with the yo-yo.

"You still have your brother's…" He cleared his throat quickly and rephrased his observation while he sat down next to her. "You still have your Digimon."

"Never stopped. Do you still have Nova?"

"Yeah, I… She's in my treasure chest somewhere in the van."

"Got it."

"You were always a bigger fan than the rest of us," he shrugged. "You know, I heard Des got married? Can you believe that?"

"Yeah, she's bringing her husband to the gathering tomorrow night."

"You have a gathering?"

"It's for Digimon fans only. You wouldn't be interested."

"Hey, come on," the man chuckled. "I'll bring Nova."

"Do you have batteries?" This was answered with nervous laughter, and Ellowin sighed before reaching into her pouch to retrieve two small, silver batteries, which she handed to him.

"Thanks, Ellie."

"What did I tell you about calling me that, Spencer?"

"Sorry… Hey, what time is your thing?"

"Past midnight."

"Perfect! I'm playing at the Hippie tomorrow night, around eight. If you have time, you should come check us out."

"You're in a band?"

"Yeah… You don't do social media much, that's right. Just like Zay. Have you kept in touch with the others any other way? I mean, other than Destini."

"I don't even remember them," she lied. "I remember there was a boy and a girl, and they were both annoying." This prompted more laughter from Spencer.

"We used to all be best friends."

"What does that even mean?"

"Well… Hey, remember when Kaylee fell off of the top of the slide when she was pretending to be Growlmon?" He chuckled. "She was freaking out because she thought she broke her leg. Luckily she was fine. THAT time."

"Remember when we went to the Digital World and tried to be heroes and a lot of people died to protect us when we messed everything up?" Spencer took a moment to think before responding to this. He made a small grunt in the back of his throat and took a deep breath.

"Ellie… We've been over this-"

"Don't do that, Spencer. Don't be my parents."

"I'm sorry, I just… We were kids, Ellowin. We played games. Pretend games. We used our imaginations, and…"

"It was real, Spencer. It happened. We all made a promise to never forget. They might have brainwashed you when we all moved away, but I'm not going to sit here and listen to you disrespect the memories of our friends."

"Okay, okay," Spencer said, gently wrapping an arm around her, his light brown hand contrasting pleasantly with her pale, freckled skin. "I'm sorry. I'm on your side, okay?" She nodded. "It happened. If you believe it happened, then I believe you."

"Liar."

"Okay, so I _want_ to believe you."

"Sure."

"So where's that party?"

"Gathering, not party. I'll text you the directions."

"What, on your ancient flip phone?"

"Bite me."

\/\/\/\/\/

"Yes ma'am, I just got the boxes today."

"Did they ship everything to you?" his mother's voice sounded from the mobile phone. "Did it all make it okay?"

"Um… There are three big boxes. They all look fine." Zayden said as he pushed his shoulder up to hold his phone against his ear. He grabbed a collection of plastic clothes hangers - all being put to use by clothing articles from one of the boxes - and rose to his feet. He carried them with him into the bedroom of his new apartment and set to work depositing them in the closet.

"Okay, that's all of them, then. How are you settling in, my darling?"

"I'm doing fine," he said absently as he continued the closet-filling. "I landed a substitute job, which I hopefully won't screw up. I don't start until next Monday though. The landlord is really nice. She let me borrow a fan." His task done, he returned to the living room and glanced at the box fan in question, which he had still not plugged in and turned on, due to being carried away with unpacking and many other things. He had the apartment door wide open, letting the air in, so as to save on utilities. The early afternoon sunlight pouring in and providing free lighting didn't hurt, either.

"Is your AC broken?"

"N… No, Mama, I'm just cheap," he said, sitting down once again in his little circle, surrounded on one side by his coffee table and on all others by cardboard boxes and plastic crates. "I'm fine, the AC is fine, everything is fine."

"Stop saying 'fine,' it's making me think everything's not fine."

"Okay, I won't say it anymore," he laughed as he began to open the second cardboard box. "I'm… sterling."

"Sterling? Like sterling silver?"

"I'm…" Zayden sighed. "I'm marvelous. Exceptional. Spectacular… Prodigious!" He gasped, reaching into the container he had just opened and pulling out an old lunchbox.

"I think he found the Digimon stuff, honey," he heard his mother laughing on the phone.

"Oh my _gosh,_ " Zayden cheered, opening the lunchbox and marveling at the tiny treasures inside. There were mostly collectible cards and old video games, along with several folded-up pieces of paper with pencil and crayon writing. But among all these unconventional treasures, was a box-shaped device small enough to fit in the palm of his hand. It was transparent orange in color, with a solid blue border around the screen, and three small green buttons. "Polaris!" he squeaked, holding the virtual pet to his chest. "Oh my gosh, you guys kept all of this?" He shuffled through the rest of the cardboard box, admiring the assorted things he had gathered as a child.

"Of course, I remember how crazy you were about your monsters. Now, don't get carried away, I still want to talk to you for a minute."

"I'm putting it down now," Zayden said, setting down the lunchbox and slipping the virtual pet into his jeans pocket. "All yours."

"Good," she laughed. "How's the neighborhood? Is it okay? Have you met any people?"

"It seems nice, I think? I haven't really paid attention. But no one's bugged me so far, so I'm sure it's gonna be fi… Gonna be great."

"Okay, honey. Did you get in touch with your old friends? Other than Kaylee? She was asking about you yesterday."

"Not yet, I… Wait a minute. You talk to Kaylee? Like, without me? The two of you speak directly to each other?"

"Well, I didn't think I needed your permission," his mother laughed. "You know we talk, Zay. I talk to her mother. I grew up with her mother. You know that. This isn't news."

"Well, I knew you talked a few years ago, but I didn't know it was an… ongoing thing."

"I like to keep in touch. She's a nice girl, Zay."

"Uh-huh," he huffed, as he knew what his mother usually meant when she referred to anyone as "a nice" boy or girl.

"Have you eaten today?" Zayden's eyes darted to the cup of ramen sitting on the coffee table next to him, and he grabbed the fork inside it to shovel a jumble of noodles into his mouth. They were lukewarm at best, as they had been sitting on the table unattended for quite some time.

"Yes," he said finally. "I'm eating now."

"You just took a bite for the first time in half an hour, didn't you?"

"No, I've been eating this whole time," he lied, knowing she would be able to tell immediately, but not sure what else to say.

"That's it, you need somebody over there. I'm coming down there right now."

"No, Mama, you don't need to do that! I'm fine, I promise."

"No, you're not. You're going to end up in the hospital! I… Hold on, your mom wants to talk to you."

"Hey, Zay," another voice chuckled from the other end of the phone.

"Hey, Mom!"

"How are you doing, my man?"

"I'm fine, I promise," he sighed. "You're not gonna let her come down here, are you?"

"Not just yet. We'll visit sometime soon, but I'll make sure she doesn't quit her job and try to move down there."

" _Thank_ you."

"Are you going outside regularly?"

"Sometimes," he answered slowly.

"Make sure to do it every day. And eat something every now and then. And call your mother every other week or so, so she doesn't have a heart attack."

"I will. I promise."

"Cool beans. I love you, little man."

"I love you too, Mom. Tell Mama I said I love her."

"Will do. Have fun with adult life, buddy. Bye."

"Bye!" He pressed the red button on his phone screen and placed the device in his pocket.

"That was cute."

"Aaah!" Zayden jumped at the sound of someone's voice in his apartment, unintentionally dropping the mobile phone. He turned his attention to the doorway to see his childhood friend Kaylee standing in the living room, holding a coffee shop cup in one hand.

"Sorry," she said. "I was going to knock, but the door was open, so… Um. Boo."

"Boo," Zayden said, rising to his feet once he reclaimed his phone. "Kaykay, you…" He stood there, awkwardly fidgeting for a moment, before finally closing the distance across the living room - stepping over boxes on the way - and throwing his arms around her. She raised the arm holding the cup out of the range of his grip just in time, and wrapped her other arm around him. "How've you been?" When he let her go, she held out the drink to him.

"I've been lots of ways. Better now that I have your friendly face in town again. Here, take this already." He took the cup with a grateful bow of the head. "Housewarming gift for the college graduate! It's French vanilla."

"My hero," he said, taking a few quick gulps of coffee. "My eyes were starting to mutiny. I've been up for a while."

"Do you wanna go get some more, and um… Some real food?" She finished with a sidelong glance at the ramen cup.

"Yes!" Zayden sounded his approval of the suggestion as he snatched up the cup of noodles and rushed it to the refrigerator. "You are the holder of the best ideas ever. I'll go wherever you want to, I don't really know places."

"Sure, that's fine, just.. Please don't say you're going to finish that ramen later"

"Okay, I won't say it," Zayden laughed, causing Kaylee to groan.

\/\/\/\/\/

"Don't come closer, no! Hey! Get back over there!"

"What are you doing?"

"Dying, obviously," Destini shouted as she frantically tapped buttons on the video game controller in her hands.

"So dramatic," her husband laughed from where he sat on the floor, flipping through magazines.

"Whatever," the black-haired woman growled as she dropped the controller on the recliner and turned the video game console off. "It's a dumb game, anyway."

"Yet another dinosaur game bites the dust?"

"The thing is, none of them are really _dinosaur_ games, they're just games about shooting dinosaurs. I don't want to shoot them, I want to study them, hang out with them, go on adventures or whatever. And most importantly, pet them. If someone would make a game where I can pet dinosaurs, they would get _all_ of my money."

"But you like Jurassic Park, don't you?"

"The Super Nintendo one I played when I was a kid," Destiny said. "It was unique and fun, even though I had to shoot the precious creatures. All the new dino-killing-or-escaping games are massive disappointments. It's the same thing over and over again. And they don't have that… I don't know. That _feeling_ Jurassic Park had."

"Maybe it's just because you're getting older."

"Ew! Jeremiah!" She groaned and buried her face in her hands. "You said the deplorable word!"

"Sorry," he snorted, rolling his eyes.

"I'll never forgive you."

"Aw, come on baby, forgive me!" He laughed, rising to his feet, only to fall down on the chair in her lap and throw his arms around her.

"Noooo! Get away, villain!" She laughed and curled up as much as possible with her husband's legs covering her own, before landing fake punches to his chest. "I shan't be swayed by your irresistible charm and hotness. Oh!" She pushed him off of her when she heard the loud beeping of her Digimon virtual pet calling for her attention. "Fossil is hungry," she said as she grabbed her transparent green device from the entertainment center's top shelf and pressed buttons to feed the LCD monster.

"Are you going to be _this_ dedicated to that thing when we start having kids?"

"Excuse _you!_ Fossil is my firstborn child, and he will make an excellent big brother! And anyway, I'm not pregnant yet. Don't go counting your chickens or whatever."

"'Yet' being the key word," Jeremiah said, planting a series of kisses on her cheek and caressing her dark brown skin.

"Whatever! Get off me." She shoved him away once again, and continued to feed her digital child. "How's Donny doing?"

"Um…" He walked into the bedroom of their small apartment, returning shortly with a purple-colored device of the same shape as his wife's, with yellow accents. "He seems okay, I guess. Oh, I think he wants to play a game or something…" He set to work pushing buttons.

"You are such a bad parent," she shook her head.

"You're the one that bought the expensive thing," he shrugged.

"Don't call him a thing. You'll hurt his feelings!"

"Des. It's an imaginary monster on a screen. It doesn't have feelings."

"You have no imagination, that's the problem," she said, yanking the Digimon away from him. "It's okay, Donatello, I'm here to validate your existence. Don't you listen to Daddy."

"I have plenty of imagination," he said as he settled back into the recliner and put his arm over her shoulder. "I can imagine us with a big family, going on picnics and watching school plays…"

"Of course _you_ can imagine it. You won't have to carry a living thing inside you for most of a year and dump it out in excruciating pain."

"No, but that's what I have you for," he laughed, but quickly straightened his face. "…Sorry, honey," he said sheepishly when he saw the killer glare she was sending him. "I'm sorry!"

"You're sleeping on the floor tonight."

"We sleep on the floor every night."

"On the hardwood floor. Not on the crappy worn-down half-mattress we call a bed. Nice try, though."

"Oh, well, it was worth a shot."

"Sigh," Destini said, letting out a heavy breath.

"You can't sigh and _say_ 'sigh' at the same time."

"Watch me, fool," she said, pushing him off of the chair yet again. She stood and dropped her V-pet gently into her pocket, setting her husband's purple one into his hand, then headed for the door. "I'm going to get coffee. Take care of your child. And remember I'm kidnapping you and taking you to Ellowin's shindig tonight."

"Coffee at 3 pm?" he asked as he regained his seat on the recliner.

"You're surprised? You've known me, what, more than two years? You should have this stuff down."

"You can't 'have it down' when 'it' is pure randomness."

"Fair enough," she shrugged, blowing him a kiss from the doorway. "I love you, space cowboy. Don't save the world without me."

"Whatever that means."

\/\/\/\/\/

"So, have you gotten back in touch with any of our old friends?"

"I've heard about Des getting married. There were two other girls, right? I don't remember them very well.

"A girl and a boy, actually. 'Stacy' is really Spencer." Zayden almost choked on his coffee, his eyes wide.

"Good! That's so good! I'm proud of him."

"I tagged you in the post, but you're never online, so…"

"Hey, I'm plenty online, I just don't do 'social media'."

"Well, 'plenty online', did you know most of the gang's back here as well?"

"Whoa, really?"

"Ellowin's been here for years. I think she moved back as soon as she could get away from her parents. I don't see her much, though."

"That was the mean one, right?"

"She wasn't _mean,_ _"_ Kaylee laughed.

"She was totally mean. Only to me, though."

"She seems okay these days. I talked to her once, about a year ago. She still believes we… That it was real."

"That what was real?" he asked slowly, knowing full well what she was referring to.

"Remember when we were kids, we used to play pretend Digimon games? We would make up stories and pretend they were real?"

"I wish it was real," Zayden sighed.

"Zay…"

"What? What did I say?"

"Do you remember August?"

"Y… Yeah. He was the "parent" of the group. Babysat us all the time. He went missing when we were playing in the park, didn't he?"

"Their parents got really upset when Ellowin kept saying he was killed in the 'Digital World'. They threw out her cards and tapes, coloring books… All of it. They moved soon after, but I remember how miserable she was. Not only mourning her brother, but… Angry that they wouldn't believe her."

"We were all upset about that for a while," Zayden nodded. "We all believed the same thing. It was hard not to. It all felt so real. Even now, it's hard to believe the memories are just my overactive childhood imagination."

"We had some strong ones, that's for sure. Just… I worry about her. When you meet her, don't encourage her. If she brings it up, anyway."

"Zayden?" a voice called from the front of the shop. "Oh my GOSH!" They glanced up to see a dark-haired woman who had just entered the establishment, arms flailing about.

"Hey, Des!" Kaylee called, gesturing for her to sit down at the table with them.

"Destini?" Zayden guessed, which was answered by the woman dashing over to their table as fast as she could and leaning in to hug Zayden, an embrace he accepted awkwardly.

"I can't believe you're here, Zay! I haven't seen you in so long!"

"It's nice to see you, Destini," Zay nodded shyly as the woman finally let him go and took a seat next to him.

"Boy, call me Des. Oh my gosh, I've missed you so much! What has it been, like twelve years?"

"Something like that," Kaylee said.

"It's been…" Zayden paused a moment. "Nineteen years, one month, and… nine days." They both stared at him, Destini slack-jawed and Kaylee grinning. "…Give or take a few hours. Actually, I've seen you once since then, Des, when our families went on that camping trip ten years ago. And of course I've seen Kaykay a few times in the interim." They both gave him a light-hearted laugh. "What?"

"Good old genius Zayden," Des said. "You haven't changed one bit."

"What? I've changed. I've changed a lot."

"Yeah, you got even smarter."

"That's not what I meant!"

"Oh, it doesn't matter," Destini laughed, throwing her arms around him again. "What matters is, it's _you._ We finally have you back!" Zayden let out an annoyed groan at all of this, but reached up his hands and squeezed the arms wrapped around his neck in a gesture to let her know that he felt the love.

"Speaking of having people back," Kaylee said, "did you hear that Spencer's band is in town? They have a show tonight."

"Oh my gosh, really?"

"Yep. Quite a long way from Arizona, but we finally get to see him again."

"He must have come all this way for someone special, huh," Destini said suggestively, nudging Zayden in the side with her elbow. "Huh? Huh?"

"…What?" Zay laughed. "What are you… I don't get it. What's going on?"

"Des _ships_ Ellie and Spencer," Kaylee sighed.

"You can't ship real people," Zay said, scrunching up his face.

"That's what I said."

"They're crazy about each other and everyone knows it!" Des said defensively. "Spencer's always tagging her in stuff on the internet. And sending her smiley faces!"

"Gasp!" Zayden said in mock astonishment. "Smiley faces? In that case, it _must_ be serious."

"I'll fight both of you!"

"So we should go to his show," Kaylee said, trying to change the subject. "Show our support. He might be happy to see us after so long."

"He'd _better_ be," Destini laughed. "Wait… Tonight's not good. I have a thing. Unless it's early enough…."

"They're supposed to be playing at eight," Kaylee said. "Which, in local venue language, probably means it'll be around ten."

"Okay, well my thing is after midnight, so we should be fine. You two should come with me after the show! I'm sure Ellie wouldn't mind."

"Ellie?" Zayden echoed.

"Oh! Her secret club?" Kaylee asked, lowering her voice a bit.

"Yep. You guys would love it," she said as she tapped away at her smartphone. "Do you still have any of your Digimon stuff?"

"It's a Digimon club?" Zayden asked. "My moms just sent me all of my Digi-stuff. I have Polaris with me right now. She needs batteries though."

"Spike is laying around my house somewhere," Kaylee shrugged, and Destini handed them each a pack of batteries, which they took slowly. "Okay. Rock show at eight or ten, secret club meeting after midnight."

"And you guys can meet my husband!" Des beamed.

"What's he like?"

"He's a butthole," she said, her smile turning immediately to a frown. "And he's sleeping on the floor tonight." The two laughed while she checked her cell phone. "Okay! I texted Ellie telling her I'm bringing y'all, and she said 'Whatever'. So you're in!"

"How does 'Whatever' constitute a positive response?" Zayden asked.

"Because she didn't say anything rude."

"Fair enough."

\/\/\/\/\/

"Alright then, give it up for Mercy Love," Spencer said enthusiastically, gesturing with his arm to the band that had gone on before them. "They were great, right?" Several positive cheers answered this. "We'll… _try_ to do around as well as them so as to not let you guys down," he said in faux-humility, which was met with a few laughs. "So yeah, we're Phantom Hurricane, and we're usually based around Arizona. Most of you have probably never heard of us, but I'm actually from around here myself, strangely enough. Anyway… Let me not waste the night away talking about myself."

"He's known to do that," the bassist, Cherry chuckled into her own mic.

"Yeah… This song is called Forever Fall. We usually don't open with this, but it's a special night, so why not?" The drummer, Cody, laughed at this, mostly unheard, and received an annoyed glare from Spencer, which he ignored while he started the song up with a steady drum line.

" _All the trees and signs point to…"_

A pleasing rhythm started up, courtesy of Ereck, their lead guitarist.

" _Dropping what I'm holding onto._

_And I/ can_ _'t/ help/ but/ think/_

_That/ there/ might/ be/ some/_

_O/ther way~_

_I don_ _'t wanna fall asleep tonight,_

_When I could fall into forever in your eyes._

_I know,_

_It would never be enough._

_I could never be-_

_When the clocks start ticking at three a.m._

_And the moon shines on what might_ _'ve been,_

_I know,_

_There_ _'s no bottom to this pit I'm falling."_

Spencer danced around the center of the stage a bit during a short instrumental section, careful not to wander too far for fear of knocking something - or someone - over.

" _No way I can touch down,_

_For fear of fire and shaking ground._

_Have to build a better way,_

_Without leaving a scar on today._

_Gotta catch more than just my breath,_

_Before I fall to my-_

_I can_ _'t take this, I can't shake this,_

_There_ _'s gotta be another way~_

_I don_ _'t wanna fall asleep tonight,_

_When I could fall into forever in your eyes._

_I know,_

_It would never be enough._

_I could never be-_

_When the clocks start ticking at three a.m._

_And the moon shines on what might_ _'ve been,_

_I know,_

_There_ _'s no limit to this web I'm crawling._

_Keep falling, keep falling._

_I can_ _'t take this, I can't shake this._

_Gotta build a road to a new tomorrow._

_I can_ _'t take this, I can't shake this,_

_Without leaving a scar on today~_

_I don_ _'t wanna fall asleep tonight,_

_When I could fall into forever in your eyes._

_I know,_

_It would never be enough._

_Can I ever be?_

_When the clocks start ticking at four a.m._

_And the moon shines on what might_ _'ve been,_

_I know,_

_There_ _'s no bottom to this pit I'm falling,_

_Limit to this web I_ _'m crawling,_

_No bottom to this sky I_ _'m falling down."_

"Yeah!" an enthusiastic blond man in the front row cheered, raising up both of his fists in approval as the small crowd applauded.

"What do you think?" Kaylee asked her three companions sitting at the bar in the cramped venue while the band started up a Red Hot Chili Peppers cover. "Pretty awesome, huh?" Jeremiah nodded silently, but contributed nothing to the conversation for the time being.

"They're good," Zayden said. "They remind me of Boys Like Girls. Just a little. The music, not the singing. Spencer's vocals are more like…" He trailed off.

"Yes?"

"Well… Not that," he floundered, shrugging his shoulders.

" _Standing in line to see the show tonight, and there's a light on._

_Heavy glow._

_By the way, I tried to say I_ _'d be there,_

_Waiting for._

_Dani the girl is singing songs to me beneath the marquee,_

_Overload_ _…"_

"He totally wrote that first song for Ellowin," Destini said, beaming.

"Stop," Kaylee said in a drawn-out groan. "Hey, do you think Ellowin is here?"

"Not sure," Zayden said. "I'm sure he invited her, though. Or… Do they keep in touch?"

"He probably invited her," Destini said. "I don't know where she is, though."

"Well, I haven't seen her in two decades, so I couldn't help you," Zayden shrugged.

"Oh hey, she's over there," Kaylee pointed to a brown-haired woman leaning against the back wall, a messenger bag hanging from her shoulder, eyes transfixed on the stage.

"Maybe we should say hi?" Zayden suggested.

"Ellowin!" Destini suddenly shouted, waving enthusiastically at the older woman with both arms before jumping from her seat and squeezing through the crowd as fast as possible to approach her.

"Not what I had in mind, exactly," Zayden chortled, "but it works."

"She's like that a lot," Jeremiah sighed, finally speaking up. "Sorry about that."

"You don't have to apologize," Kaylee smiled. "I remember her being kind of like this when we were kids. Well, when she was happy, anyway."

"Yeah…" Zayden nodded slowly before finishing off his soda. "That's why we have to thank you. You're apparently doing something right." Jeremiah blushed silently at this, while Zayden rose from his seat. "Well, shall we join them?"

"We shall," Kaylee grinned, and the three of them made their way slowly over to where Destini was chatting Ellowin up.

" _Standing in line to see the show tonight, and there's a light on,_

_Heavy glow._

_By the way, I tried to say I_ _'d be there,_

_Waiting for._

_Dani the girl is singing songs to me beneath the marquee,_

_Oversold._

_By the way, I tried to say I_ _'d be there,_

_Waiting for_ _…"_

"So he really is back." Ellowin nodded in Zayden's direction when he approached, but she said nothing else to him, and made no gesture for a handshake or hug.

"Nice goggles, Ellowin," Zay said. "What's in the package?" he asked when she made no immediate reply.

"It's for the gathering. I take it you three are still showing up as Destini's guests?"

"We'll be there," Kaylee said.

"So, Spencer's a heck of a lyricist, huh, Ellowin?" Destini asked, doing her usual elbow-nudge. Ellowin only shrugged in response, but kept her attention on the stage while the others made conversation.

\/\/\/\/\/

Once the show was over, Destini took her three guests out for a quick meal, then led them several blocks away from the busier streets and toward an area with several closed-down shops. All of the lights were off - but one suddenly turned on, bringing a splash of life to the forsaken marketplace.

"Open for business," Destini giggled, quickening her pace, dragging her reluctant husband along with her.

"Are you ready?" Zayden asked Kaylee with an excited grin.

"As I'll ever be," she shrugged as they entered the building.

"Welcome to Fragment," Ellowin greeted them. She and Spencer were standing in the front, the latter setting aside his guitar case. Three other people sat at one of the several long tables set up in the front area of the old shop, opening card tins or flipping through books. The brown-haired woman stepped over to the nearly empty window display and pressed the power button on an old, banged-up stereo, and soon catchy electronic music floated through the air.

"Fragment," Zayden echoed, as the group wandered around in different directions. The front area with the tables was partitioned off from the back by two brick walls, each starting from either the left or the right wall and only reaching halfway across the shop, forming a makeshift doorway. The opening was easy to miss at first, especially to Zayden, who never had the world's best depth perception. "I don't know why, but that sounds important somehow."

"But in a weird way," Kaylee nodded. "Like from a dream."

"It should," Destini said, giving them huge grins, as if they were missing out on something obvious.

"I'd like it to be the name of the place when my grandpa makes me the sole owner," Ellowin said. "If he does."

"What do you mean?" Kaylee asked.

"Let's not talk about me." Ellowin moved toward the table where the three strangers were seated, and tore open the parcel she had been carrying. "Well, our hard work has finally paid off," she said at a louder volume, addressing the three who had arrived first, as well as Destini. "Feast your eyes, everybody." From out of the parcel she pulled a large piece of cloth, which she spread out on the table. There were many rectangles and squares of various colors, and the background was black and blue.

"It's so beautiful," the young man in the middle of the group of three strangers said, smoothing out the cloth with his hand.

"I love it," the woman to his left-hand side agreed, pausing in her card shuffling to admire the design. "It's even better than I imagined."

"I was thinking the same thing," Ellowin said. "And it's thick enough not to get too ruffled up during a game. Oh… Yeah, sorry," she said, breaking them away from the current topic of discussion for the time being. "Guys, this is my crew. Sophie, Dylan, and Teagan." Two of the three sounded greetings upon hearing their names, but Sophie, the one who hadn't spoken yet, simply waved awkwardly before returning her attention to the cloth and the cards in her hands. "Crew, these are some people I used to know when I was a child. You all know Des, and she was a part of that group, too." At this, the three stared at the group of slightly older folks Ellowin had allowed into their club, Teagan blinking rapidly as she did so. "And, um…" She gestured to Jeremiah. "This is Des's husband, apparently."

"So, this is for the Digimon card game?" Zayden asked, eagerly eying the cards.

"The mat is for our game," Ellowin said. "We've been redesigning the rules of some of the games and melding them into one."

"There was more than one card game?" Spencer asked.

"Quite a few. Digi-Battle, D-Reader, CCG, Xros Wars…"

"Xros Wars?"

"Y'know, based on the sixth season?"

"Sixth? I didn't know there was a fourth or fifth."

"Digimon is a thing again?" Zayden asked excitedly.

"Digimon never stopped being a thing," Ellowin said. "So, who wants to try out the custom game on the new mat first?"

"Yo," Dylan said, rising from his seat to take one in front of the game mat. "I'm gonna test out my new Nature Spirits deck."

"Don't tell me what you're using, Rookie," Ellowin laughed. She pulled a deck of cards, tied up with a rubber band, out of the pouch at her waist. Once unbound, she shuffled them, while Dylan did the same with his deck. "Teagan, Sophie, y'all want to challenge some of our guests?" she suggested, dealing herself out a hand of eight cards.

"I'm down," Spencer said, raising his hand.

"I'll take you on," Teagan said, waving him over to sit opposite from her.

"Jer, you wanna play a match with me?" Destini asked.

"I'm going to exercise my right to observe without participating," Jeremiah shook his head.

"Oh, you're no fun. How about you, Kaykay?" she turned her attention to Kaylee.

"Sure, can you teach me?" Kaylee laughed. "It's been a good while."

"Of course! Sophie, why don't you play a round with Zay? Do the old Digi-Battle, he used to play that with us." Sophie nodded, and Zayden, after a moment's hesitation, took a seat opposite the quiet girl.

"Um… Hey," he said after a moment, in which she handed him a spare deck of cards from her tin.

"Hello," she responded slowly, tilting her head to cover most of her face with her hair. She shuffled her own deck while Zayden flipped through the one she had passed to him for a moment.

"They're both so shy," Destini whispered to Kaylee, leaning over the table. "Isn't it _cute?_ "

"I can hear you, Des," Zayden said flatly.

"Stop shipping people," Kaylee said, smacking Destini's arm from across the table. This exchange garnered a few laughs from Teagan and Spencer, while Ellowin shook her head.

"Anyway," Zayden said, clearing his throat. "Awesome cards."

"Thanks," Sophie mumbled.

"I feel like I'm twelve all over again."

"That's not the kind of attitude we need here," Ellowin said.

"I think it's great," Destini cheered. "There's nothing wrong with feeling like you're going back in time for a minute."

"That's because you live in childhood, dear," Jeremiah laughed.

"That floor's not gettin' any softer," Destini sighed absently, as if it were just a passing thought of little consequence. Her husband quickly fell silent.

"What's that mean?" Teagan asked.

"Nothing," Jeremiah said.

"He's sleeping on the floor tonight, apparently," Kaylee said.

"You told _her?_ " Jeremiah asked, to which Destini rolled her eyes.

"She's my friend, Jerry. Friends talk. Besides, I didn't tell her what you _did._ "

"Whatever."

"So, Digimon," Zayden said, trying to steer the subject, which got him a faint smile from Ellowin. "What are the other seasons like?"

"What's the last one you saw?" Teagan asked.

"Um… Season three. I didn't finish it though."

"You didn't finish the best season?" Destini asked, and the other club members sighed.

"Here we go again," Dylan groaned.

"Well, season four is like Digimon mixed with Power Rangers," Teagan said, steering the conversation back on-topic.

"I liken it more to Sailor Moon, myself," Dylan said with a shrug as he set down his Rookie card, a Biyomon, in the foremost center space and a Tentomon in one of the two spaces below it.

"You would," Teagan scoffed.

"They're basically magical girls," Ellowin said with a nod. "Instead of having Digimon partners, they are the Digimon."

"What?" Zayden chuckled.

"They transform into Digimon," Destini said. "It's REALLY awesome!"

"In some people's opinions," Ellowin added. "Then season five goes back to the usual human/Digimon partnership thing."

"There's an Agumon," Destini said. "Not the one we used to know, but he's awesome. There's a Biyomon, too, but this one's a boy."

"A male Biyomon?" Spencer's eyes lit up. "That's the best thing I've ever heard."

"Season six is like. They all join together to become powerful. But not like Jogressing. It's different. Like a Megazord or something."

"Definitely more Power Rangers-y," Dylan nodded.

"Or Voltron," Des suggested.

"And season seven…" Dylan began slowly. "What can we say about season seven?"

"It's different," Teagan said.

"It's different," Destiny nodded.

"It's… very different," Sophie half-whispered.

"I love it," Ellowin said. "It's written better than most of the others, and they use strategies other than 'Blast it with a fireball one more time'. It just doesn't have the monsters I love the most, so…" She trailed off, and no one spoke for some time, other than giving instructions on how to play.

"So, is this what you guys do?" Zayden finally asked. "Just play cards all night?"

"That would get horribly boring," Teagan said.

"We watch episodes," Ellowin said. "Play video games, read manga, observe fan communities, have objective discussions about everything Digimon. We're halfway through the sub of Savers right now."

"Usually we marvel over whatever new Digi-thing Destini's wasted her money on at whatever given time," Dylan grinned. "And sometimes we even read and review fanfiction."

"Those are dangerous nights," Ellowin said. She evolved her Candlemon into Meramon by playing a card titled "Giant Meat" that seemed to be cut from an index card, and placed the Champion Card on top of the rookie. Dylan followed, discarding two cards to turn his Biyomon to a Leomon. The two began playing cards from their hands, while the others set up their own games, all of them sneaking glances at the custom game going on next to them.

"Oh yeah, this is my jam!" Destini jumped to her feet to run to the stereo and crank up the volume.

" _One! Two! Hey!"_ the voice on the radio belted out.

" _I'm headed off on a digital trip and that's what I plan to do,"_ Destini sang along.

"I feel a million pounds of nerdy just hearing this song again," Spencer said, blushing.

"Same," Zayden nodded.

"Hey, are you guys thirsty?" Destini asked. "We have a fridge full of soda in the back."

"I'll take some!" Spencer raised the hand holding his cards. Jeremiah politely shook his head.

"I don't drink soda," Zayden said slowly, giving his hosts a sheepish grin. "Do you guys have any water?"

"Oh yeah!" Kaylee said, reaching into her backpack for a lunch box, which she unzipped before reaching inside and retrieving a bottle of pink fruit juice. She promptly handed this to the red-haired young man sitting beside her, and he gave her a warm smile. "Ruby red grapefruit juice is still your favorite, right?"

"My hero," Zayden said. He cracked open the bottle and chugged most of its contents in one go, letting out a content sigh while he closed the lid. "Thank you so much, Kaylee."

"Don't mention it," the blonde-haired girl said, waving a hand in the air.

"You are disgusting," Teagan observed, garnering a few laughs from around the room.

"Sorry, Zay, I have to agree with Teagan," Kaylee said. "Grapefruit is an abomination. But I fully support your right to consume it so the rest of us don't have to." Zayden grinned at her before finishing off the drink.

"Mer!" Everyone's attention was drawn to Ellowin, who had just shrieked and jumped out of her chair.

"What happened?" Teagan asked, to which Dylan shrugged.

"I just beat her Meramon. It's not the first time, so I don't know… Hey, are y'all okay?" Spencer, Kaylee, Destini, and Zayden had all frozen in place, staring at Ellowin. Destini was the first to snap out of the trance and rush to her side; the brunette had suddenly started sobbing.

"Shh, it's alright, hon."

"Mer…"

"I know. I know."

"He gave his life for us," Zayden said, while Spencer and Kaylee rose from their seats to put their arms around Ellowin. Memories he had for so long discarded as dreams flooded his mind. He could vividly see the scene of a fiery orange and red Digimon pushing him and five other children - that's what they had been, children - out of the way of a sword strike and taking the piercing blow in their place. The sword impaled the fiery Digimon through the chest, and he burst into countless tiny bits of data which quickly dissipated. The three enemies stared down the children with eager smiles. There was no one left to protect them…

He hadn't realized that he had flinched at the memory of the sword blow, and was now shaking as he pushed the memory to the back of his mind. He made his way over to the others, followed closely by Jeremiah, who was giving them all a puzzled look.

"What's going on?" Jeremiah asked his wife, who shook her head.

"Jer, it's a long story."

"Ellie, I'm sorry," Spencer said, wrapping his arms around the older girl as she wiped tears from her face. "I didn't believe you. I'm sorry. I'm sorry." A bright light surrounded Ellowin, Zayden, Kaylee, Spencer, Destini, and Jeremiah, while the other three looked on in awe. Soon the light faded, ascending upward, taking the six with it.

"Ellowin?" Dylan called, receiving no response. The partial owner of the tiny building was nowhere to be seen; her cards remained on the table, and her seat appeared untouched. He ran outside and turned around quickly enough to see the last traces of the light ascending into the night sky. Teagan and Sophie followed him just as the light disappeared.

"Ellowin!" the three shouted after their leader, but no answer came. The abandoned street was devoid of life and sound, with the exception of the stereo's music pouring out of the small shop.

" _I'm going digital._

_Completely digital._

_Now I_ _'m invincible._

_Let_ _'s all get digital."_

\/\/\/\/\/

Falling. They were falling. But their descent was so soft. They could see a large land mass below. And just off the coast… islands. The memories were unmistakable now.

Fragment.

Village of Beginnings.

Home.

They were still in midair when they were attacked.

"What is THAT?"

Jeremiah's voice.

No one could react in time… But what could they have done? Each of the six had the air knocked out of them when some strange creature made up of metal tendrils slammed its body into them, sending them flying. They tried to grab onto each other, but they were divided.

But then they thought they heard…! But it was all in their imaginations, wasn't it? A loud growl five of them had heard before. But then each of them, one by one, saw the faintest flicker of white and purple, and had the sensation of being dunked in water, or perhaps gelatin, before hitting the ground and passing out.

"Ellie… Ellie… Ellie…"

"Hm…"

The human woman opened her eyes to see a tiny black fuzzy blob staring at her with yellow eyes.

"Ryu!" She pushed herself off of the thin cot she had been lying on and sat upright before grabbing the tiny blob creature with both hands and caressing their tiny cheeks with her thumbs.

"Heehee, that tickles! Hey, where's Auggie?"

Ellowin froze upon hearing this name and let go of the Botamon, turning away from them and staring into space. Part of her mind registered the rock walls and floor of some sort of cavern, but the rest of it was stuck in the past. Eventually her attention was caught by the brown brick attached to her pouch, and she lifted it up, focusing on its changes. In place of the two prongs used to connect and battle with other virtual pets, there was an empty square slot. Meanwhile, the keyhole shape had transformed into an actual keyhole, albeit a small one.

'Just like last time.'

"Ellie?"

"Auggie… August died, Ryu."

"Oh. When will he be back?"

"He's not coming back. I'm sorry… I'll take care of you from now on."

"Oh… Okay…" The Botamon lowered their gaze and turned to the side, trying in vain to fight their tears.

"Oh, you're awake," a voice sounded. Ellowin rose to her feet and spun around to face a crudely-carved doorway in the cave wall. Three humanoid Digimon, all identically composed of fire, stepped into the chamber, one of them dropping a heavy rucksack beside the entrance.

"Mer!" Ellowin ran to the Meramon who had been carrying the bag and threw her arms around him. The other two stared at her in wonder.

"You're not burning her," one of them whispered.

"Lux, do you know this human?"

"What?" replied the third Meramon, arms still bound by the tight grip of Ellowin, who was now sobbing into his abdomen. "I… I don't think so…"

"It's really you," Ellowin exhaled. "You're here. You're okay."

"Um… Yes, well… How are you feeling, young one?" Ellowin finally let go of the Meramon and took a step back to look into his blue eyes, wiping tears from her own.

"You don't remember. You don't remember me or Ryu."

"I can't say that I remember meeting either of you, but you do have a familiar air about you. I'm sorry-"

"It's fine," Ellowin said, shushing him with a finger to her lips as a tear fell from each of her eyes. "You don't have to remember me. I'm just happy you're back. Now it's my turn to protect you." This garnered much laughter from the other two Meramon, who were already seated, and she rounded on them. "Find something funny?"

"You should worry about protecting yourself first, huh?" one of them snickered.

"You want to go? I'll take you both on right now."

"Whoa, cool down a bit, little flame," the Meramon called Lux said, placing a hand on her shoulder. She took in a slow breath and turned back around to face him.

"I remember how you used to call me that all the time."

"Um… Okay," he cleared his throat and sidestepped her, heading toward a large iron pot in a hollowed-out section in the wall. "We're about to eat. Are you hungry?"

"I am!" Ryu piped up.

"Not really," Ellowin shook her head.

"Oh well, you can sit with us anyway," the second Meramon said, waving her over to the circle of stone seats. "My name's Conley, and this is Cinder," he said, pointing to the one she had challenged.

"Lux is the one who found you," Cinder said, gesturing with his head toward the one Ellowin had referred to as "Mer". "He said you fell out of the sky. That true?"

"Yeah, um… Me and five others were brought here, but we were knocked off-course by some strange Digimon I've never seen. If it even was a Digimon…" She stared off into space for a moment, and the two remained silent, waiting for her to continue. "Do any of you know how I can find Baihumon?"

"Baihumon…?" Cinder asked. "Like, actually find the deity? What do you want with her?"

"I need to know why she called me back to the Digital World." The two leaned back a little upon hearing this.

"You're a real human?" they exclaimed together.

"What do you mean, a 'real' human?"

"You're from the human world?" Lux asked, as he dropped the vegetables he had chopped into the cauldron. "I knew something was off when I saw you didn't have any memory marks."

"You lost me," Ellowin said flatly. The three fiery Digimon exchanged glances.

"I'm guessing there weren't any Digital World humans around when you were here last?" Conley asked.

"Um…"

"They look like you," Lux said. "Human, I mean. They look human, but they all have colorful markings on their skin. The gods made them because they realized that humans bring out the potential of Digimon. That's the story, anyway."

"That sounds kind of… creepy," Ellowin said, raising an eyebrow. "I'm guessing they're made out of data, like Digimon?"

"That's the general idea," Conley nodded.

"Hm… Anyway, I'm pretty sure Baihumon is the one who summoned us, because she chose us last time and brought us here. There has to be a reason."

"Wouldn't she come tell you if she needed you?" Lux asked.

"Good point," she shrugged before rising to her feet. "I guess I'm gonna stick around and take care of you, Big Flame. For the time being, at least. I need to keep Ryu in shape, too. What can I do for training around here?"

"Training?" Conley asked.

"Ryu needs proper training if he's going to grow up right. What do you do for exercise?"

"Oh, well we work with the rest of Subter City, digging our way through the rock. We're slowly moving the city."

"And Lux is a treasure hunter," Cinder added, "but you're not gonna make much money that way."

"I'm not cut out for heavy-duty work." Lux let out a humorless laugh. "But you could probably hold your own, as fierce as you are."

"I'd recommend not making your Botamon do anything like that, though," Conley said. "It won't be able to do much until it grows."

"I know that," Ellowin said. "He can come jogging with me when I'm out exploring. Not now, though. Mer, do you think you can manage feeding him while I'm out?"

"Um… Young one, I'd prefer it if you call me Lux. But yes, I can do that."

"Thanks…" the young woman turned around on her heel when she felt blood rush to her face. "I won't call you Mer if you don't want me to."

"I thank you."

"So," Ellowin cleared her throat. "Where can I get a job around here?"

"There are arrow signs along the walls pointing to the quarry," Conley said. "When you get there, ask for Agate. He'll look after you. I can't guarantee he'll give you a job, but he'll do what he can."

"He won't be hard to find," Cinder said. "He's the only… Well, since you've been to this world before, maybe you know what an Apemon is?"

"Hanumon, also called Apemon," Ellowin said. "Yellow spiky fur, usually carries around a huge bone club? Yeah, I got it."

"She knows her stuff," Conley chuckled.

"I'm home again. I know all I need to know."

\/\/\/\/\/


	2. Once Upon a Dream

**2\. Once Upon a Dream**

"Ungh… Let's not do that again…" Zayden opened his eyes to find himself in a dense forest. Every part of his body ached, and he didn't want to, but he knew he had to get up. After much groaning and shifting around, he was seated cross-legged on the grass, and surveyed his surroundings while running the most recent events through his head.

He could remember being enveloped in a bright light and pulled up into the sky. The next thing he knew, he and four childhood friends, plus Destini's husband Jeremiah, were falling toward a group of islands.

_Fragment,_ he thought to himself. _That_ _'s where we went last time… But it was only one island. Right…?_

But this time, they hadn't been allowed to arrive safely. Someone - or something - that they could barely see had swept through the air and knocked them out of their initial trajectory. Zayden wasn't aware of exactly what had happened, but he could remember flying over water and land after being hit by the unknown attacker. He had closed his eyes and braced for a lethal impact which had never come. Something had to have softened his landing… but what?

It wasn't long before he noticed that his lanyard felt heavier than it usually did. He glanced down to where his Digital Monster was, and had to do a double take: the virtual pet had undergone some unmistakable changes. Where a keyhole symbol used to be on the side of the screen, there was now a literal keyhole, though he had no key that would fit it. In place of the two prongs used to communicate and battle with others of its kind was a square gap, though the peg and indent on either side of it remained. And protruding from the screen was what appeared to be a rope made of pure light, connected to a large egg.

"Polaris…?" He lifted the egg from the ground, taking a moment to notice the warmth of the shell against his palms. After staring at the yellow and white egg for what seemed forever, he brought it in close to his chest and wrapped his arms gently around it. "How is this… possible?"

"Hey!" A shout jarred him from his thought processes, and he glanced to his left to see a group of Digimon - _real_ Digimon - staring at him, some standing on the ground while others were hanging from the trees. They all had a humanoid body type, albeit with roots in place of feet and what seemed to be large thorns in place of fingers. Large purple flowers bloomed from the tops of their heads.

"Alraumon?" he thought out loud. From what he remembered, the species was a color swap of Palmon, which was one of the more popular Rookies, due to one of the members of the species being a partner of one of the Digidestined.

"We run this forest, human. That means you're on our turf. So you'd better get back to wherever you came from, or we'll feed you to the trees!"

"'Feed you to the trees'?" another one mocked. "That sounds so stupid."

"No, it sounds _intimidating!_ _"_ The first one to speak rounded on the second and glared. "If you bury someone, they're in the soil. And the trees get their nutrients from the soil. Just like we do!"

"But trees don't eat the decaying matter. That's what mushrooms do. Er… I think…"

"You don't know anything," shouted a third Digimon, and soon the lot of them were smacking each other and yelling all at once. Zayden took this as his chance to escape and, holding the egg to his chest, jumped up to his feet and ran as fast as he could.

"Hey, it's getting away!" one of them barked, and soon the entire congregation was chasing Zayden through the forest. Not knowing his way around, and not seeing any clear path, he stumbled through the woods blindly, hoping he found a clearing soon. Before too much more time had passed, the gang of Alraumon had him cornered with no way out.

"This isn't how I thought it would end…"

Before any of the Vegetation Digimon were able to lay a hand on him, a blur of black and violet streaked through the crowd, knocking down all of the assailants on one side of the human. When the blur slowed, Zayden thought he could see a cat-like figure for only a split second before it went moving again, knocking back the rest of the Alraumon. While they all struggled back to their feet, Zayden's lightning-fast savior met his brown eyes with her own set of golden irises.

In Zayden's mind, the shape of this Digimon was strikingly familiar. But his memory insisted that her fur was supposed to be white where the ebony was, and the gloves on her forepaws yellow and red instead of black and purple. But before he could ask questions, or even thank the feline for saving him, she let out an annoyed sigh and spoke.

"This is the part where you run away." After a moment of dumbfounded hesitation, he nodded and jumped over one of the downed Digimon before running through the forest once more. Not long after he had stopped to catch his breath, he heard the cat Digimon's voice again.

"You're safe now."

"Yah!" Zayden jumped at the Digimon's first syllable. He turned his gaze upward and saw his rescuer sitting on the branch of a tree, licking her paw. "Don't scare me like that," he wheezed, still trying to return his breathing to its usual pace. The feline shrugged at this - actually shrugged. "Are you… Are you a Gatomon?"

"BlackTailmon," she corrected. The voice sounded slightly feminine, harsh and distinct, presenting each syllable it spoke quickly and to the point. "Scout of the Sanctuary Woods, if you want to be precise. Then again, there is no other BlackTailmon in Meditation."

"Meditation?"

"Meditation Hall," the Digimon clarified. "The hallowed home of Lady Holydramon. Which is where I'll be taking you."

"Excuse me?"

"Unless you'd rather be left to the Alraumon…?"

"Good point," he nodded. "Lead the way, I guess."

"Hmm." The feline leaped from one tree to another, pausing for a moment to glance back at the peculiar creature she had discovered, then to yet another. Taking the hint that this was the way he would be guided out of the forest, Zayden followed at a quick walking pace, still clutching the egg to his abdomen.

"So, you're a scout?" he asked, raising his volume a little higher than usual so as to be heard from so far behind BlackTailmon. "Is that supposed to mean you're in an army?"

"Meditation doesn't have an army," his guide said after a long silence. "Not exactly, anyway. We're not defenseless, but…" She turned around on the branch she was currently perched on, allowing him a moment to catch up, before bringing herself back to the topic he had presented. "I'm not that kind of scout. I watch over the forest. Protect its inhabitants. And these days, knock some sense into them, apparently."

"So you're more of a ranger than a scout," he said with a smile. This earned him another shrug.

"Words are just words. If you were to call me BlackGatomon, I'd still be the same person. My name doesn't make me who I am, so why should the name of what I do?"

"BlackGatomon?" Zayden asked, raising an eyebrow. "You… You're consciously aware of the differences between the names in the Japanese sub and American dub?"

"I have no idea what you just said, strange creature," BlackTailmon said before turning back around and jumping to the next tree.

"You don't know what I am?"

"I know that you're a human."

"So you know about humans?"

"Who doesn't?" Zayden didn't know how to answer this.

"…So, you're a 'scout.' Does that mean you deal with things like that a lot?" He pointed his index finger back in the direction of the recent struggle, though she wasn't looking at him.

"That," she began slowly after her latest jump, "doesn't usually happen. Or at least, it didn't until recently. This place is supposed to be safe, hence the name Sanctuary Woods." She jumped from her current tree branch to another. "Those Alraumon aren't really like that. I don't know what's going on with them, but I've notified the Hall, and there's not much more I can do. My job consists of surveying the forest and helping anyone who needs it."

"But if you're, um, escorting me…"

"There are other scouts. It's covered."

"Oh… I didn't see any-"

"You wouldn't, unless they wanted you to. You didn't see me at first, did you?"

"True. So… This Lady Holydramon… What would she want with me?"

"Why do you ask so many questions?" BlackTailmon sighed and paused in her jumping again to allow him to catch up, though she didn't turn and look at him this time.

"I'm just a very curious person," Zayden shrugged as he stepped over a fallen tree branch. "I've never been here before. Or… at least, I didn't think I had. I'm still not sure if this is… I can't believe Digimon are real, and… If the things that happened before weren't just a dream…"

"Are you done mumbling to yourself?" the Digimon asked. When she received no answer but the sound of his footsteps, she continued on her way. "Lady Holydramon watches over Directory and tries-"

"Directory?" Zayden asked, cutting her off. "Is that where we are?"

"The Continent of Directory, home of Archive Port, the foremost city in the Western Hemisphere," she nodded. "Specifically, we're in the South Easternmost region of that continent, in the Sanctuary Woods. The Temple of the Archer is to the East, and… plains and desert to the West."

"Is Fragment nearby?"

"Fragment, the Southern isles?" BlackTailmon asked. "They're South of here, in the gulf. Have you been there before?"

"Well… Sort of…"

"Sort of? Either you have or you haven't."

"It's… I still think it might have been a dream, but… Then again, this probably is, as well."

"What do you mean?"

"Well… I'm talking to a Digimon. A real Digimon. But Digimon aren't real. They're a type of breedable monster created by Bandai back in the late Nineties."

"Since you believe you're dreaming, would you like me to give you a quick swipe of my claws to wake you up?" She raised her right paw with a sinister smile.

"No, no, I'm fine! I'll wake up when I'm ready."

"I didn't think so."

"It's just… The chances of something like this being real… I don't even know. That's just the thing, there's no… I just… I have no idea. I… Oh!"

"Oh?" BlackTailmon turned around to see a large crack had formed in Zayden's egg, splitting it horizontally. The crack grew larger and wider for a moment before the shell burst into several tiny shards, leaving a tiny jellyfish-like creature with pale translucent skin. Zayden adjusted his grip to accommodate the Poyomon, and let out a short laugh while he held the tiny critter to his chest.

"Polaris!" he squeaked, nudging the baby Digimon's smooth body with his cheek.

"Zayden!" the tiny blob responded. "You're here! I knew you were here! I knew, I knew!" The Poyomon jumped up and down, easily slipping out of Zayden's loving grip.

"You're really Polaris," Zayden said, a tear running down his cheek. "It's really you. I can't believe you're real. I'm so happy to meet you."

"We've met before, silly," Polaris chirped, letting out a quick string of light-hearted laughter.

"Really? Where was that?" Zayden asked with a chuckle. "Once upon a dream?"

"Once upon a dream? I don't think I know that place! Is that where I hatched last time?"

"It's… It's a Disney song, honey."

"Ooh, can you sing to me?"

Of course! But we've got to keep moving so we don't…" He trailed off when he noticed that BlackTailmon was gone.

"Um… BlackGatomon? BlackGatomon! BG?"

"Don't call me that," the feline Digimon's voice finally answered with an air of amusement. She came walking on her hind legs from behind several bushes, dragging a large leaf laden with many berries.

"So that's where you went," he said, staring at the berries. "Are those for Polaris?" BlackTailmon nodded before running off into the thicket again.

"We might as well stop for the night. Your partner will be hungry quite a few times in the next few hours. And by that time, it'll be too dark for you to see properly. Even with me guiding you, it would be more trouble than it's worth."

"Okay," Zayden shrugged as he sat down cross-legged and began to feed the berries to his Digimon. "Sounds like a plan. Hey, where are you going?"

"To gather firewood."

"Do you want any help?"

"Just feed your partner. It can be your turn next time."

"Fair enough."

"Zayden, you grew so much since last time I saw you!" Polaris exclaimed. "You're a giant!"

"Is that so?" he smiled down at the Poyomon. "Well, I can give you bigger hugs this way."

"That's true!" She squished her jellyfish body against his hand, and he gave her another gentle hug before scooping up more berries. "Zayden, are you crying?"

"I'm fine," he shook his head, wiping away tears. "I just… Thank you so much, Polaris."

"Thank you for what?"

"For being real."

"Aww…"

He cleared his throat and began to sing while feeding her the tiny fruit.

" _I know you, I walked with you once upon a dream._

_I know you, the gleam in your eyes is so familiar a gleam._

_And I know it_ _'s true, that visions are seldom what they seem._

_But if I know you, I know what you_ _'ll do:_

_You_ _'ll love me at once, the way you did once_

_Upon a dream._ _"_

\/\/\/\/\/

"Great. Just great. There goes my other boot."

"You can get more boots, Jerry," Destini laughed as she picked her left foot out of the mud and sent it slapping back down into it right in front of her. Once this was accomplished, she lifted the right foot and stepped forward again, slowly and carefully. She was holding on to a small grey and green egg with both hands, leaving no free arm to help keep her balance. Jeremiah had an egg of the same size, although it was white and purple in color, held against his chest with one hand, as he held out his other arm in an attempt to keep his equilibrium. Both eggs had ropes of light attached to them, protruding from their virtual pets, which had somehow grown in size.

"I can't believe you're in such high spirits," Jeremiah scowled. "I'd think you of all people would be upset at the prospect of trudging through mud."

"Yeah, I'd usually feel uncomfortable and whine about wanting to go home, I admit that," Destini laughed. "And my leg hurts like hell. But we're in the Digital World, Jer! That means everything's gonna be okay."

"This is not okay. This is not okay at all." At this point, Destini's foot slipped, and she went falling onto her side, taking Jeremiah down with her.

"Oof! Ugh… Not okay at all," he repeated.

"Hey, Donny's egg!" The purple-striped Digi-Egg had fallen out of Jeremiah's grasp, and tumbled through the mudflat toward the water. The rope kept it from going too far, but it was precariously close to the water's edge.

"I got it," he said, struggling to stand up, though Destini rolled over first and half-crawled to the shoreline. She picked up the egg, but soon found herself falling backward when a large crustacean creature burst out of the bay and splashed her with water.

"Whoa!"

"Des!" Jeremiah got up to his feet and ran toward the shore.

"Who do you think you are, barging in on my property?" the monster bellowed.

"Des, that giant crawfish just talked," Jeremiah screamed. "It TALKED!"

"That's not a crawfish, it's an Ebidramon," Destini laughed, slowly rising to her feet and groaning in pain when she put weight on her right leg. "We're sorry, Mr. Ebidramon. We didn't know we were trespassing. We just dropped in - literally. Could you tell us where we are?"

"Why, yes. You're in MY bay, and you need to leave immediately, unless you want to be my lunch!"

"Oh, quit your yammering," another voice bubbled to the surface of the water. Mere seconds later, another huge creature surfaced, crawling onto the mudflat. It was a pink creature with a huge muzzle and two large muscular arms, carrying a gigantic grey shell along with it. "You don't own the bay any more than the hundreds of other Digimon who live in it. Stop harassing people."

"Hi, Shellmon!" Destini waved enthusiastically, receiving a low bow of the head in response from the shellfish monster.

"Well, hello, human! Have we met?"

"I don't think so, but I have your card!" Jeremiah slapped his palm against his forehead upon hearing this.

"My card?"

"Shellmon, don't fraternize with the enemy!" Ebidramon shouted.

"They're not anybody's enemy," Shellmon said.

"They're trespassers, I told you!"

"And I told you, you don't own anything, so they can't be trespassers. Live and let live, I always say."

"Well… They… They're annoying! I'm fighting them just for that!

"I won't let that happen," Shellmon said, moving between the Ebidramon and the humans.

"You wanna go, old man? Huh? I'll fight you too!" He clicked his claws together a few times before bringing one down on the other Digimon's shell.

"You need to cool off," Shellmon said, firing a column of water from the top of his head. The stream pushed the lobster monster back into the water of the bay, where he stayed screaming about ridiculousness for a moment before diving beneath the surface.

"Thanks, mister, uh…?" Jeremiah trailed off, half-expecting the giant aquatic creature to grace them with a regular name.

"Shellmon," the Digimon chuckled.

"Are you a, um… A peaceful monster?"

"Don't worry, I won't hurt you. But I do have to wonder, what are two humans doing way out here in the middle of nowhere?"

"I'd like to know that myself," Jeremiah sighed.

"Shellmon, could you tell us where we are?" Destini asked. "I've been to the Digital World before, but this time someone knocked us off-course or something, and I have no idea how far. Is Fragment nearby?"

"That's way down South from here. We're in the Western Directory Bay."

"Oh, we're still in Directory," Destini sighed in relief. "Awesome. So we must be near Frontier, right?"

"Frontier? Doesn't ring a bell," the Digimon shook his head.

"The prairie village, Frontier? It should be…" She glanced around, surveying her surroundings. "Ummm, over there, maybe?" She pointed to the Southeast.

"There's nothing that way but desert for miles and miles. And train tracks, of course."

"There's a train?" Jeremiah perked up. "And it could take us to civilization, right?"

"Well, if it's a big city you're after, you'd be on the right track."

"Hah!" Destini guffawed. "The right track! Ahhh, that's great." Jeremiah groaned and shook his head.

"A pleasure to have my comedy appreciated," Shellmon chuckled. "Anywho, the train can take you all the way down to Digital."

"Is that what they call Digi City now?" Destini asked, placing a hand to her chin.

"I seem to recall it being called that by some of the older mons around," the large Digimon nodded. "It's way down there, Southeast of Device."

"Device! Finally, a name I know," Destini cheered. "Okay, Digital is definitely Digi City, then."

"Of course, the closest city is Archive," Shellmon said. "Then again… All the easy routes have been blocked off for a while now. You'd have to climb through mountains for days."

"Yeah, we don't have that kind of time," Jeremiah said. "Digi City it is."

"And that's one step closer to Fragment," Destini said. "If we go there, we should meet someone who knows why we were called here."

"Well, if you're headed for the station, I can give you both a lift further inland. It'll be easier to reach it that way."

"That would be wonderful," Jeremiah said. "Destini got hit really hard by that… whatever it was that ambushed us in the sky. I… can't believe I just said such a ridiculous sentence out loud. Anyway, I think her leg's broken."

"If it was broken, I wouldn't be able to walk on it," Destini huffed.

"You never know. You're pretty tenacious," Jeremiah joked. "Anyway, thank you, Mr. Shellfish-thing."

"Just call me Shellmon. Climb aboard!" They climbed up onto the shell of the Digimon, and he crawled back into the water before swimming along the coastline. Once they entered the mainland via a wide inlet, Shellmon surfaced again and announced that this was the closest bit of shore to the station.

"See that hill over there?" He gestured with one of his arms to a rock mound in the distance, to the South. "It's actually artificially made, a long time ago. It was the entrance to a tunnel that the tracks ran into, but it's been closed off for several years."

"Whoa, what's this?" Jeremiah shrieked, staring down at the egg in his hand. Destini let out an excited whoop at the same time.

"They're hatching!" she cheered. The eggs cracked open, slowly but surely, before slivers of the shells went flying through the air and falling to the sand beneath their feet. Two tiny Digimon were caught in the hands of the humans before they fell too far. In Destini's hands was a tiny yellow blob with red eyes, while Jeremiah now held a tiny pale green creature with a pacifier. The yellow blob smiled up at Destini, who was beaming, but she soon knelt down and placed the Digimon on the ground. She wiped excess yellow slime from her hands onto her T-shirt, leaving faded spots.

"Is that stuff poison?" Jeremiah asked.

"It's fine, Jer," she said. "Pay attention to your son."

"My what?" Jeremiah glanced down to his own tiny blob, resting in his hands and looking up at him with smiling eyes.

"Pabu!" the tiny Digimon greeted him, bouncing up and down in his hands.

"It's Donatello. He's a Pabumon. And this is Fossil, in his Zurumon stage." Destini raised the collar of her shirt over her lips and planted a kiss on the red-eyed blob through the fabric. "I missed you so much, honey. There's not a day that's gone by that I haven't thought of you."

"I missed you too, Deedee!" the Zurumon said, jumping up onto her lap.

"It can talk?" Jeremiah asked, glancing back and forth between Fossil and Donatello.

" _He_ can talk," Destini corrected. "This is Fossil, my best friend. You've met him in V-pet form. This is what he's really like."

"It's just a dream," he mumbled, shaking his head. "It's just a dream."

"Keep telling yourself that," Destini giggled. "Shellmon, you wouldn't happen to have any food, would you?"

"I can rustle up a little something for the babies," the Aquan Digimon said, returning to the water. Not long after that, the tiny Pabumon in Jeremiah's hands began to sob quietly, then burst into a loud wail.

"Des, it's… He's crying!"

"Well, he's hungry. You would be too, if you just hatched."

"Hey, crybaby," Fossil said with a sneer. "You're not gonna waste away, so can it!"

"Fossil! Apologize right now, mister." Destini gave him the best stern expression she could manage, and he squinted up at her before turning back toward Donny.

"I'm sorry," he said to the Pabumon, who continued to wail, hardly taking any notice of him. "You're still a crybaby though," he mumbled under his breath.

"I heard that."

"Sorry…" Destini eventually turned her attention to Donny.

"It's okay, honey, food is on the way."

As if on cue, Shellmon rose up out of the water and dropped a handful of fish into a pile on the sand.

"Yay, fish!" Fossil jumped up and down. Destini grabbed one of the fish and dropped it into the expectant open mouth of her Digimon.

"They can eat it raw?" Jeremiah asked, stepping closer to the small fish pile.

"Well, they can eat raw meat that grows in the garden," she shrugged, handing him a fish and feeding another to Fossil. "So it's the same principle."

"The… garden?" Jeremiah shook his head and fed his fish to Donny. "Aren't you worried they'll get salmonella?"

"Deedee, who is this?" Fossil asked. "It's not Zayden, is it? Did he Digivolve into a total spaz?"

"Fossil!" Destini scolded again. "Say you're sorry."

"I'm sorry," the Zurumon said, dragging out each syllable in feign contrition, as if merely saying the words was a chore.

"This is Jeremiah. He's my husband."

"Oh… Why don't I have a husband? Wait… Don't tell me that pacifier-mouth crybaby is my husband!"

"Fossil, be nice! That's Donatello. He's your brother."

"What-? Brother! I didn't ask for a brother! Whose idea was this?!"

"Mine, mister attitude," Destini said, pinching Fossil's equivalent of a cheek and immediately wiping the slime residue from her fingers onto her shirt. "So suck it up." He giggled loudly.

"Okay, okay. If it was your decision, I can live with that. It's nice to meet you, Donatello. You too, Jeremiah." He sighed this last bit. Donny started to tear up again, giving Fossil a terrified expression and sliding backward in Jeremiah's hands until he was pressed up against his chest. The young man quickly fed the Fresh Digimon another fish, silencing him for the moment.

Once both baby Digimon had full stomachs, they both let out a loud yawn, and while Fossil fought his sleepiness, Donny passed calmly into unconsciousness.

"Well, now that that's taken care of," Jeremiah said, "I'm going to go get those doctors. Shellmon, you mind keeping an eye on Des? She can't travel in her condition. Not over desert, at least."

"You know I'll be fine in a day or so," Destini said, pulling him down into a hug and kissing the Pabumon sleeping in his arms.

"Yes, but I don't know what our chances of survival are out here in that time," he said while he gently tucked Donny into the inside pocket of his jacket. "I'd rather get both of us to civilization. Just promise me you won't do anything stupid while I'm gone."

"What would you classify as 'stupid'?" she asked with a glare.

"Just… Don't do anything."

"You're still sleeping on the floor. And for the next week."

"Right. If you find our apartment, let me know." He kissed the top of her head before turning to the South and walking in the direction of the distant rock mound.

"He's a character," Shellmon laughed.

"You have no idea."

\/\/\/\/\/

The air was so humid - more than even she was used to. When she opened her eyes, she found herself in a dense jungle - possibly the same one she had been sent flying toward by the bizarre creature that had hit her and her friends. Though she couldn't see much of it, she remembered seeing its head, or what she thought might be its head; a large hunk of metal shaped somewhat like an arrowhead.

"Kaykay!" She closed her eyes and reopened them before stirring from where she was laying on the grass. Strange vines with an artificial appearance stretched down from towering trees that blocked out most of the sunlight and created a dim, light-spotted jungle floor below.

'Are those vines… or telephone wires?'

She sat all the way up and saw a bright-red creature bouncing up and down in front of her.

"Spike?" she asked, following the Punimon's movements with her eyes for a moment before clasping a hand to her face, dizzy.

"It's me, it's me!" the tiny Digimon cheered. "Kaykay, you're back, you're finally back!"

"Is this real?" Kaylee asked, scooping the Punimon up into a hug. "I don't know if this is a dream or not, but I'm so happy to see you. You look like I always imagined when I was a kid."

"Kaykay, this isn't a dream, this is real," Spike squeaked. "I promise! You really are back!"

"So you mean I've been here before?"

"Of course," she giggled. "But you were much smaller then."

"Okay…" Kaylee glanced around at the jungle once more. "Last time… If it was real… Last time, we were outside of a shrine or something, weren't we?"

"Yeah…" Spike's tone changed from happy and energetic to slow and sad. "The temple. That was where we lost the battle. Omegamon…"

The name sent chills down Kaylee's spine, and she rubbed at goosebumps on her forearms.

"Omegamon… They were real. It was all… It all happened." She buried her face in her hand. "I can't…"

"Kaykay… What's wrong?"

"I just… This is a lot, Spike. This is really a lot to process. I… I thought it was real. When I was a kid, you know? I tried so hard to tell my par- My mom… She never believed me. I started spending time with doctors, and… It's been nineteen years, Spike. Nineteen years. I convinced myself that it was all in our imaginations. We all… Most of us did. If this is real… I… I don't know. I just don't know!"

"I'm sorry, Kaykay," Spike said, nudging her elbow with her cheek.

"Spike, you didn't do anything," she sobbed, letting out a weak laugh.

"I know, but I wish this wasn't so hard on you. You don't deserve that. I wanted our reunion to be happy."

"Oh, I am happy to see you," she said, squeezing her in a hug once more. "Don't be upset, hon."

"Kaylee… You're trying to cheer me up, when I'm the one that was trying to cheer you up…"

"Yeah," she said, scratching the back of her head. "I kind of do that… Hey, are you hungry? I have sandwiches in my bag."

"That sounds great," she replied, nodding her round body as Kaylee unzipped her backpack and retrieved the lunchbox. "Hatching really takes it out of you."

"I can imagine." Kaylee presented Spike with a plastic container full of sandwiches, and petted the feelers on top of her head while she ate.

"By the way, Kaykay, I should let you in on something big in my life. I've actually discovered that I'm a girl, so…" Kaylee blinked at her a few times.

"What, you mean you're trans?"

"I guess? It probably doesn't work that way for us, considering we don't have a sex, but… I don't know, I just. Everybody always used to call me a boy, y'know? But I never _felt_ like a boy. I mean, I didn't think about it much when I was younger, but… The more I thought about it, the more considering myself male just felt wrong. I know a lot of Digimon don't really care about defining themselves in terms of gender, but… It's important to me. I hope it doesn't make you like me any less."

"Like you less?" Kaylee scooped the tiny red blob up into her arms again. "Spike, I couldn't… I can't do any less than accept you the way you are. I'm just glad you're real."

"Me, too," she laughed. "Thanks for understanding. Um, I'm still hungry, though, so…"

"Oh, sure," the blonde human chuckled, setting the Punimon back down.

"So, where are the others?" the Punimon asked between bites, not sure what to say next. "Did they come too?"

"We were all together, but we got attacked by something… Spike, do you know why we're back?"

"I don't. I'm sorry, Kaykay. I'm pretty sure it was Baihumon who called you again, though. Like last time."

"Baihumon…" Saying the name filled her with a sense of calm and courage that she couldn't explain. "She sent us on a mission last time?"

"Yep! To save the Digital World. She tested us first, then sent us on the mission."

"But if we failed… Why is the Digital World still here?"

"I'm not sure. Maybe-"

"AAAAAAHHHH!" They both turned their attention to the nearby bushes to see two Digimon running in their direction, their arms to their sides. One was an Ogremon, a green humanoid with pale long hair growing from his head and pointed teeth protruding from a wide, gaping jaw. The other, quite smaller, was a yellow reptile Kaylee easily recognized as an Agumon.

"What's going on?" Kaylee asked.

"Run!" the Agumon shouted. "Hide!" The two fleeing Digimon quickly climbed up trees and hid among the leaves and telephone wire vines, while loud stomping could be heard in the direction they had come from. The Digimon shaking the ground was much larger, a bipedal dinosaur with large horns protruding from its face.

"Is that a Triceramon?" Kaylee asked. "I used to have that card."

"This isn't a card, Kaylee!" Spike yelped. "We'd better run for it!"

"R… Right." She rose to her feet, taking Spike with her, but she froze in her tracks when the Triceramon let out a roar.

"Where are they?" The dinosaur bellowed, shifting their head from left to right. "What did you do with them? Are you hiding them? I know you are."

"I'm n-not hiding anybody."

"Lies! You're helping those two puny spineless punks, I just know it! Give them up or I'll ground you to a pulp along with them!" Kaylee's muscles tensed up, and she gritted her teeth and clenched her hands into fists before staring right into the Triceramon's face.

"Who do you think you are? Can you really be so weak as to pick on people so much smaller than you? What is your malfunction? I hate it when people act like this. I hate it! Nothing gives you the right to threaten people!"

"W… Well," the Triceramon stammered, both enraged and confused at being scolded by a creature less than half of their muscle mass. "They ruined my house with their ridiculous decorations!"

"And that means you get to attack them?" Kaylee scoffed. "Who's the higher-evolved Digimon here? Them or you?"

"Um… Me?"

"That's right, you! You should know better. So they're being annoying? Does that mean you should stoop to their level and throw a temper tantrum? Do you really think threatening or hurting somebody is gonna fix your problem?"

"But… But I…" They growled furiously and leaned in to be face to face with the blonde human. "You'd better consider yourself lucky I don't squash you beneath my foot!" They turned to stomp away, while Kaylee sighed loudly and stared up into the trees.

"Hey! You two!"

"Us?" the Agumon gulped.

"Yes, the only two Digimon hiding in trees around here."

"Wh-what do you want?" the Ogremon whimpered.

"You two are going to come with me to fix this Triceramon's house."

"What?" both of them, along with the Triceramon, shouted at once. The largest of them all turned back around to stare at her, bewildered.

"Why do we have to?" the Agumon asked. "It looks better that way!"

"Did you ask if you could decorate it beforehand?"

"Well, no…" the Ogremon admitted.

"I guess we should have," the Agumon shrugged.

"You guess?" Kaylee echoed.

"No, I know…"

"Then let's go." They both sighed, exchanging a hopeless look, and slid down from the treetops before falling into step behind the human. "Lead the way, Triceramon."

"Allllright," the Dinosaur Digimon said, shrugging their huge shoulders before continuing on their way, their steps now loud but gentle footfalls instead of angry stomping. "You didn't have to do that, you know."

"I know I didn't have to. But it's what should be done."

"Well said," the Ogremon cheered. "What's your name?"

"Kaylee. This Punimon is Spike. She's… my partner, I guess."

"Yep, that's me!" Spike cheered.

"What about y'all?"

"My name's Shine," the Agumon said. "This is my best friend Coreopsis."

"But you can call me Corey for short," the Ogremon added.

"Even if I had a name, I wouldn't give it out to any of you," the Triceramon huffed.

"Fair enough," Kaylee shrugged.

"Nice to meet you, Kaylee," Coreopsis said. "I can tell you're the kind of person who wants the best for others."

"Oh, thanks. I try, I guess."

"Would you like to join our Kindness Parade?"

"Your what?"

"Well…" Both Shine and Corey stopped in their tracks, and Kaylee turned to see them both strike ridiculous poses, holding one arm skyward and the other toward their companion.

"The Ogre-Agu Kindness Parade!" they both cheered. Kaylee couldn't help laughing, and she squeezed Spike gently between her chest and arm to give them a small round of applause and make sure they didn't think she was making fun of them.

"Idiots," Triceramon grumbled, shaking their head as they continued on their way.

"Kaykay," Spike said as her human shifted her position and placed her back into her hand, "I'm really hungry…"

"Oh! I'm so sorry. I don't have any food left in my backpack. Let's go find some."

"No need," Corey said, retrieving a bunch of bananas, which he handed to her, from the pouch strapped across his chest. "We have emergency fruit!"

"Oh my gosh! Thank you, Corey." Kaylee received the bananas with a grateful bow, and set to work peeling them and feeding them to the hungry Punimon.

"Not a problem. That's what the 'Kindness Parade' is all about - helping others!"

"Sounds wonderful. You can start by helping Triceramon have his home back to the way he likes it."

"Oh man, you don't forget easily," Shine mumbled to himself.

"These guys are a hoot!" Spike laughed. Once the fruit was all gone, the three ran to catch up to Triceramon, who was steadily clomping along the makeshift path created by their earlier stomping.

\/\/\/\/\/

"Are you Agate?"

"Who wants to know?" the yellow-furred Digimon replied, presenting a scrunched-up face to Ellowin. "My name doesn't concern you, little girl. You just need to know that I'm the boss around here."

"Well, 'Boss', my name is Ellowin Rhys, and I'm here for a job."

All the Digimon working in the underground quarry paused to stare at this small human staring confidently into the face of their very tall supervisor. She didn't seem very threatening, but as the light of the glowing stones touched her pale face, her eyes seemed to reflect back something fierce and powerful. Many of them murmured among themselves until Agate yelled for them to mind their own business and get back to work.

"Little girl, I-"

"Ellowin."

"Huh?"

"My name is Ellowin. Say it when you're talking to me."

"Alright," the Apemon growled, narrowing his eyes. "Ellowin, what makes you think you can just walk in here and get a job from me? Do you know what it's like to build a city?"

"Do _you_ know what it's like to not see your best friend for nineteen years, and then find out that he doesn't even remember you?"

"I, uh… What?"

"I owe someone my life. I'm going to do whatever I can for that person. I'm going to help him. But for me to do that, I need money, and I need a way for myself and my Digimon to get exercise and stay in shape."

"What do you mean, 'your' Digimon?" Agate asked, leaning closer to her. "You're not a… real human, are you?"

"What difference is it to you?"

"That's my business. If you want a job, I guess I can't say no to an extra helping hand. But there's not much you can really do, is there? You don't have any natural tools. Do you have skills or experience in this line of work?"

"Not really."

"Then I guess you'll start at the bottom of the mountain, as they say. I'll tell you what. See that pile of rubble over there?" He pointed his index finger toward a large mound made up of various chunks of rock that had been dug up from the cavern walls.

"Sure, what about it?" Ellowin asked after glancing toward the pile and returning her vision to the furry Digimon.

"If you can move all of that over to those carts," here he pointed to several wooden carts banded with metal, "before the sun comes up, then I'll give you that job."

"Done," Ellowin said, extending her hand while internally cursing at the Digimon, who took her hand and shook it once. "Don't think I'm backing down easy, old man."

\/\/\/\/\/

"So, what did you do the last time you were here?"

"I'm not sure," Zayden shrugged, petting the smooth skin of his tiny Poyomon while she ate her third round of berries for the evening. The three of them were seated around a small fire BlackTailmon had built in a wide clearing. The sun had almost completely set, and the sounds of the forest were much more perceptible in the dark, so the young man was glad that the mysterious Digimon had initiated conversation. "I think I remember more of hanging around Fragment than anything else. But that was… just a test. Right? Hm…" He plopped one of the purple berries into his mouth, taking a moment to let his mind rest on the slightly bitter taste before continuing. "I guess… I tried to forget the ending harder than the rest of it."

"You guess a lot, I've noticed," BlackTailmon sighed. "I'm not going to make a very detailed report. Are you sure about anything?"

"I… Well…"

"It's fine, I've worked with slow-witted people before."

"Wha-?"

"You're not the brightest glowstone in the cave, right? It's no big deal."

"I'm just flustered! And… And I'm actually very intelligent, if you have to know."

"Could've fooled me," she shrugged. "Either way, what did you mean by…?" She paused and raised her ears up, twitching for a moment.

"What's up?" Zayden asked, giving her a concerned look. Instead of answering, BlackTailmon leaped from her seat into the nearby bushes, whipping her tail toward something he couldn't see.

"Yeow!" someone yelped from within the greenery. BlackTailmon soon emerged, dragging out an Alraumon by the leg.

"Look what I found."

"Please don't kill me," the Vegetation Digimon shouted. "I won't do anything this time, I promise!"

"You followed us?" Zayden asked. Polaris tensed up and gave the Alraumon a warning stare.

"Well, no… I kept my distance, but… Well, I saw the light of the fire, and…"

"So you tailed us," BlackTailmon said flatly. "And I was too busy talking to this curious kitten to notice." She gestured toward Zayden, who gave her an indignant look.

"Why did you leave the group?" he asked.

"W… Well…" the Alraumon got to his feet once BlackTailmon let him go. "I wanted to apologize, first of all," he said, gazing into Zayden's eyes with his own earnest, unblinking ones. "I don't know what came over them… Over us. Everything has just been horrible lately, and I guess we just built up to a breaking point and all took everything out on someone else. I know just apologizing won't change anything, but I wanted to ask if you'd let me make it up to you."

"Wow," Zayden said after a considerable silence. "I accept your apology, Alraumon. You don't have to do anything. I mean, other than not attacking me again." He chuckled, and Polaris finally relaxed and smiled at the Vegetation Digimon.

"I appreciate that," the Alraumon said, lowering his gaze. "But I… I can't just let it go like that. Please let me make it up to you!"

"What do you have in mind?"

"Let me travel with you! I'll go wherever you go and protect you from harm. At least while your Digimon friend is still a Fresh."

"Pfft," BlackTailmon scoffed. "You'd end up doing less protecting and more getting in the way."

"Hey, I'm a pretty dependable person, for your information," Alraumon said, crossing his arms.

"If you couldn't handle one hit from me, what makes you think you'll be any use in Meditation?"

"Why I oughta…"

"I don't need a bodyguard," Zayden said, breaking up the fight. "At least, as long as this cat is around."

"And me!" Polaris piped up.

"And Polaris," he nodded. "But… If you really want to come with us, then I'd love to have you along as a friend."

"A friend?"

"Is that okay with you?" Zayden asked, turning his attention to BlackTailmon.

"Whatever," the feline shrugged. "I'm not waiting up for you when you fall behind."

"You mean if?"

"I said what I said."

"Well," Zayden said, clearing his throat. "Why don't you come sit with us?"

"So, you guys are headed to Meditation?" Alraumon asked as he took a seat in front of the fire.

"I'm escorting this wild human and his… partner, to Lady Holydramon," BlackTailmon said.

"And I guess I'll just figure things out from there," Zayden said. "When I get the chance, I'd like to wander around as much as possible. If this really is the Digital World, if I'm not having some bizarre dream, then I want to explore everything."

"Why?" BlackTailmon asked.

"The spirit of discovery," Zayden answered. "Wouldn't you be curious if you were in a strange place? Let alone one you've wanted to go all your life…"

"Just keep your curiosity to yourself until I get you safely to Meditation Hall. I can't promise I'll be able to save you from everything your incompetence gets you into."

"Hey!" Polaris shouted, casting the most threatening glance she could produce in the feline's direction. "Why are you so mean to Zay? If you keep that up, I… I… I'll have to fight you!" BlackTailmon smiled at this, but said nothing more.

"My hero," Zayden said with a smile.

"Really?" Polaris squeaked. She squeezed her body against his hand in her version of a hug, making her human chuckle.

"Of course!" Zayden lifted her up and planted a kiss on the top of her head.

"She's brave, I'll give her that," BlackTailmon said. "Or reckless, one of the two. Either way, she's loyal, and I can respect that."

\/\/\/\/\/

Jeremiah wiped another layer of sweat from his face with his shirt, which was drenched by now and not much use. He had long ago taken off his jacket and tied its sleeves around his waist, and Donatello was still sleeping peacefully within one of its inner pockets. With the chill of the desert night attacking him, the shirt he was wearing had become an icy blanket more than anything else, and he was just about to discard it when a high-pitched noise made him stop in his tracks. Without the sound of his designer shoes crunching through the sand, he could now be sure that the strange cry was not a figment of his imagination, and seemed to be coming from the other side of his destination, the large rock mound Shellmon had mentioned.

"Help! Somebody help!" It was a person!

"Hold on, I'm coming!" He picked up his pace, kicking up sand as he charged forward, turning the corner at the other side of the tunnel to see the railroad track mentioned by the Digimon, stretching out far to the South. On the Eastern side of the tracks, he could see a tiny creature with long white hairs bouncing in the sand, next to a human who had collapsed face-down on the ground. Jeremiah crossed the tracks and pulled the blue-haired adult off of the ground, turning him over to get his face out of the sand.

"Hey, are you going to make it?" he asked, brushing the young man's long locks of hair out of his face. He knew that he had seen the man before - he was the friend of Destini whose concert they had attended.

"Hey um… Steven? Sebastian? Skylar?"

"His name is Spencer," the white-haired, ball-shaped creature said, bouncing up and down even faster. "We were walking, and… The heat… He just collapsed! Can you help him?" Jeremiah stared at the tiny Digimon for a moment before blinking and returning his attention to Spencer, whose eyes had opened for just a moment before closing again.

"Spencer! Spencer, stay awake, man!" He lightly slapped the side of the musician's face a few times, prompting him to inhale sharply and open his eyes once again.

"Hnngyeah… Water," he croaked.

"Water, right," Jeremiah said. "We need to get you to the station." He threw Spencer's arms over his shoulders, picking him up as he rose to his knees. "Um… Little critter?" he asked, glancing at the Digimon, who was already bouncing her way ahead of him, following the tracks.

"My name is Nova. I'm a Yuramon. I'm Spencer's best friend and partner."

"Nova… Do you need me to carry you too? I have a free pocket."

"I can take care of myself," she said. "Just worry about him."

"Will do," he panted. "I'm Jeremiah, by the way. It's nice to meet you, Nova. You wouldn't happen to know Destini and Fossil, would you?"

"Yeah, I know that poser," Nova huffed. "Oh, sorry. I mean Fossil, in case you didn't know. But if you've met him, of course you know. How do you know him anyway?"

"Well, I only just… You see… Um… I'm Destini's husband."

"Whoah! Destini got married?! Congratulations!"

"Um… Thanks. How did you all meet?"

"Baihumon chose us. He called on six humans and five Digimon to save the world. We all met on the island of Fragment and got to know each other as we went on adventures."

"This is such an intricate dream," Jeremiah mumbled.

"What?" Before he could say anything else, a bright light and loud wailing sound erupted from the South, and they could feel the ground rumbling beneath their feet.

"The train!" Jeremiah shouted, running to the side. "Let's get away from the tracks!"

"You don't have to tell me!" Nova shouted, hopping as fast as she could. They both turned to see the train come to a screeching halt. Unlike the trains Jeremiah was used to seeing in his neighborhood, all different colored carts for different companies, this train was uniformly painted light blue and red, with golden and black accents on each car, leaving them all identical except for the engine.

"End of the line, Middle of Nowhere," squawked a bird-like creature with a megaphone as the doors to each car opened. It ruffled its white feathers and let out a happy crow. "Once again, end of the line, my fine passengers! We have reached the Middle of Nowhere. We depart for Desert Station at Nine O'clock precisely." There were only two passengers that exited the train: a large creature that Jeremiah viewed as a horrifying version of a dragonfly, and a small red dinosaur he was sure he had seen before.

"Middle of Nowhere…?" Right at this moment, Donatello had awakened, and began to cry once more. Jeremiah pulled the tiny blob from his jacket pocket and, unsure of what else to do, gave him a few gentle pets on the head. This seemed to soothe the baby, but when he stopped, the wailing resumed. "Okay, okay," he said, petting him once more.

"Hey! Excuse me, Mr. Kokatorimon?" Nova had already started bouncing toward the train, and was trying to get the bird's attention.

"Why hello there, young Yuramon!" the Kokatorimon greeted, holding his megaphone away from his face. "How did you end up all the way out here?"

"It's a long story, and I don't have time to tell it," Nova said. Jeremiah chuckled at the Fresh Digimon's unwavering confidence, and stepped toward the two.

"Excuse me. Sgt. Jeremiah Dean here. I'm going to need your help to get this man to your nearest hospital. We need to leave immediately."

"I'm sorry, but that's not on the schedule today…"

"What's up, Chestnut?" another Kokatorimon asked as she emerged from the train engine.

"Ah, conductor! We've got a Yuramon and a human here who want us to leave right away."

"I see. Young people, do you realize how important it is to keep a tight schedule?"

"It's of the utmost importance," Jeremiah said. "Without a schedule, a man's life just spirals into chaos."

"I like this one," the second Kokatorimon chuckled.

"But there's something even more important. This man could die if he doesn't receive medical attention. He needs water at the very least."

"CAW?" the conductor shouted, glancing down at the blue-haired man lying unconscious in Jeremiah's arms. "Well, why didn't you say so? Let's get this train moving, pronto!"

"Thank you, sir," Jeremiah said, before bowing and running into the nearest train car, with Nova bouncing right behind him.

"Thank gods," the Yuramon sighed as she watched Jeremiah set her partner down gently on an empty seat.

"B-but what about the schedule?" clucked the Kokatorimon named Chestnut.

"We'll adjust!" the conductor could be heard replying as she returned to the helm. "Chestnut, get these passengers anything they need!"

"Y-Yes, ma'am!" Chestnut hopped inside right before the car doors closed, and immediately started running toward the rear of the train.

"He needs water!" Jeremiah called after him as he laid Spencer down on the train seats.

"It'll be right out!" Jeremiah took in and let out a deep breath, content with this response, and Nova jumped onto her unconscious partner's chest.

"Good evening, passengers," the conductor's voice poured over the overhead speakers. "We're in a bit of a rush, so to those of you wanting to to return to Desert Station, I do humbly apologize. Next stop, way down South, is Digital! ETA roughly… hm… Three hours if we push it."

"There are no other stops between here and there?" Jeremiah asked, staring up at the speakers. "No hospitals or anything?"

"Nope," the conductor said. "Just desert, desert, and more desert."

"That's not reassuring."

"Well, if it makes you feel any kind of difference, you might be entertained to know that it used to be desert, plains, and more plains."

"Oh, that makes sense. The natural erosion and change of climate over thousands of years."

"What? No, just the data being replaced every now and then."

"…Huh?"

"Alright, here it is," Chestnut crowed happily, pushing a large cart ahead of him as fast as he could manage without knocking anything off. He poured water from a large pitcher into a glass, which he handed to Jeremiah.

"Thank you," the human said before tilting the glass to Spencer's lips. "Spencer. Hey, Spencer. Drink up, man." The musician made no reply but an indiscernible groan. Jeremiah tilted the glass a little more, allowing the ice-cold water to touch the man's lips. Getting the picture, or else acting sheerly out of habit, Spencer opened his mouth and started drinking. "Good, good," Jeremiah said, lifting the cup as more of the liquid was consumed.

"So much better," Spencer said weakly once he drank all of the water. Chestnut filled the glass again, and Spencer emptied it once more before opening his eyes. "Kokatorimon," he mumbled. "Nova used to be…" And with that, he closed his eyes once again.

"He's sleeping," Jeremiah said, checking Spencer's pulse. "He'll be fine for now."

"Good, now I need to eat before I end up in worse shape than him," Nova said, hopping onto the cart and helping herself. "And you should feed your partner."

"My what?"

"The Pabumon. And… Chestnut, I'll take mine to the cabin over there. I don't like people seeing me eat."

"You don't have to be fed like Donny?" Jeremiah asked as he gently held up a chicken tender for the hungry Pabumon in his hand.

"I'm pretty self-sufficient," the Yuramon said. "I'll be back soon. Just worry about your partner."

Jeremiah stared at the pale green blob he held in his hands.

"My partner…?"

\/\/\/\/\/

Ellowin wiped at a thick layer of sweat on her face before picking up yet another stone from her designated pile. Unfortunately, the perspiration simply smeared, and she let out a frustrated growl as she carried the rock ever-so-slowly toward its destination.

"Hey, need help with that?" Two arms reached out and grabbed hold of the stone - two human arms. She glared in the direction of a young man with bushy black hair, who was smiling at her. There were dark blue lines seemingly painted onto his face, over his eyes and down his cheeks.

"If I wanted help, I would've asked," Ellowin said, yanking the rock out of his grasp and continuing on her way.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to insult you," the being that appeared to be a young man said, following after her. "I just… I've never seen you before, but as soon as I saw you, I felt like I should help you. I know it sounds crazy, but-"

"No, it sounds like the most pathetic pick-up line I've ever heard," she grunted.

"You're STILL here?" Agate's voice rang out in the quarry, causing everyone to stop and stare once again. The Apemon thundered his way over to the two, a large pickaxe still in his hand. "You were supposed to give up and leave hours ago!"

"I love to be a disappointment," Ellowin hissed while she heaved the stone into one of the carts she hadn't filled yet.

"I can see that."

"Boss, is this a new worker?" the not-quite-human boy asked.

"No! It's a pest! Jasper, do you have the reports?"

"That's what I came here to tell you, Boss. Citrine…" He trailed off when Apemon inhaled sharply, as if preparing for a roar.

"What did she do this time?"

"Nothing, nothing. Well… not exactly. She says she hears the magma 'dancing' down below, past the old town. But our equipment isn't picking up any activity, so…"

"Just ignore her and carry on. I want the full report by moondown tomorrow. And when you…" A loud stomping interrupted them as a Tyrannomon entered the quarry, with many Meramon and Drimogemon stepping out of his way.

"Aggie, your boys did it again!"

"Oh, no," the Apemon groaned, placing a palm over his eyes. "I can't deal with this."

"You're GONNA deal with it. I didn't think they could mess up cleaning the kitchen, but surprise, surprise, they did it!"

Ellowin shrugged and went back to her task, figuring Agate would forget easily enough that he was talking to her. But…

"What's she doing?" the Tyrannomon asked, gesturing to the human girl.

"I think the boss is torturing another innocent, Reggie," Jasper said.

"How long has she been at it?"

"At least three hours," Agate growled.

"Three hours?!"

"Boss, you're evil."

"Aggie, you'd better hire her," Reggie said. "Or I'll hire her right under your stubborn nose. Anybody with that kind of determination is too good to work for you."

"Hey!"

"She's gonna take this city to places it's never been," Reggie said. "I can feel it in my gut."

"I'm not budging on this," Agate said, crossing his arms.

"But Boss," Jasper half-whispered, pointing to the Tyrannomon's stomach. "The gut!"

"I don't care. I can't stand her attitude!"

"Well, your loss," the Tyrannomon shrugged. "Hey, girl," he called, waving a claw at the Human, who dropped the rock she had been carrying and glared at him.

"My name is ELLOWIN."

"See what I mean?" Agate scoffed.

"Fair enough," Reggie said. "Ellowin, then. I'm sorry if I sounded rude. Why don't you come over here? I'd like to talk business."

Ellowin huffed her way over and took off the gloves she had been wearing, before staring up at the dinosaur Digimon.

"What's up, Tyrannomon?"

"You can just call me Reggie," he smiled. "Ellowin, I can tell you're the type of person who sees what they want and goes after it no matter what." She shrugged and nodded in response to this. "That kind of steel determination is just what we need around here. But this ol' fossil-head doesn't seem to see it - afraid he's pulling your leg with no intention to hire you, for some reason."

"I think it's his fragile ego," Ellowin said, giving Agate a straight-lipped glare. The Apemon growled, answering her stare with his own, while Jasper stared wide-eyed at her and Reggie burst into laughter.

"You just say what you want, don't you?" the Tyrannomon whooped.

"Why wouldn't I?"

"Well, honest young Ellowin, how would you like to work in my cafeteria?"

"Kitchen duty? Seriously?"

"I'll pay you one and a quarter times what Agate pays his new starters."

"Deal," Ellowin said, extending her hand, which Reggie shook with his ivory claws.

"Wait!" Agate shouted, finally uncrossing his arms. "I'll… I'll hire you! You can work part-time, from one to two!"

"You can work from four to eight in the cafe. Or longer, if you want the extra hours."

"Rrr! Ten to two," Agate growled.

"Okay."

"And your lunches will be on me," Reggie grinned.

"Sweet."

"You won't have to pay for your tools," Agate boomed hastily.

"Al…right? When do I start?"

"Tomorrow," the two Digimon said simultaneously, Reggie in a calm sing-song voice, and Agate in a furious snarl.

"Sweet. See you then. Um… Where's the cafeteria?"

"Follow me," Reggie beamed. "Seeya later, Aggie!"

"I'll be on time tomorrow, 'Aggie'," Ellowin snorted.

"This should be fun," Jasper chuckled, his boss fuming beside him.

\/\/\/\/\/

"…line, Digital! Buh-CAWWW! Once again, end of the line, Digital!"

Jeremiah opened his eyes and took in a quick breath through his nostrils before stretching his limbs - and jaw - and exhaling through his mouth. He had expected to wake up in his apartment, but upon seeing the inside of the train, he had a sudden jolt of memory of the present day. Present night, to be specific. He could hear a light snoring sound coming from his lap, and glanced down to see Donatello sleeping soundly. To his right, Spencer was still lying on the cushioned seats, and his white-haired partner with long, wavy, purple antennae was resting on his abdomen, fully awake.

"Time to get going, Jeremiah," Nova cheered, jumping onto the floor of the train and bouncing up and down. The human nodded, yawning loudly as he rose to his feet. Within seconds, he had Spencer in his arms again and was carrying him out of the train.

"Thank you for everything, Conductor."

"Just call me Holly," the female Kokatorimon said with a feathery salute. "And let us know how your friend does next time we meet, okay?"

"O… Okay. I will."

"Great, now we've got a train to get back on schedule. NEXT STOP, VIDEO STATION! WILL BE DEPARTING IN ONE HOUR! CA-CAW!"

Jeremiah gave the Digimon a quick bow before turning and walking farther into the station. Everything was shiny and pristine, with walls and floor painted white and navy blue. The floor was composed of tiles of smooth stone, most of which were white, while the blue ones formed a broad line that led like a pathway right to what he guessed was the check-in counter. A humanoid creature that reminded Jeremiah of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was working behind this counter, and since Nova had already bounced her way over, they struck up a conversation before he knew what was happening.

"Hello, um, sir…?" Jeremiah asked once he reached the counter.

"You can just call me Dinohyumon," the green-skinned Digimon said with a friendly smile. "I'm not one for names or genders, personally. Your friend here told me about the situation. Don't worry, someone is already on their way to pick up the patient."

As if on cue, a loud yet soft thumping sounded through the station, and Jeremiah had to take yet another moment to readjust his grip on reality when he saw a gigantic yellow teddy bear approach the desk.

"Oh, a Monzaemon," Nova said, bouncing up and down rapidly again. "This should be fun."

"Hi there," the gigantic stuffed animal said. "Are you the patients?"

"Um, well I…" Jeremiah mumbled for a moment, unsure of what to say to this bizarre creature.

"We are," Nova said for him. "Well, my partner with the blue hair is."

"Okay, let's go! Lovely Attack!" The Monzaemon spread open his arms, and a large pink heart-shaped bubble fired out of his chest. Before Jeremiah could make a move to run away, he was absorbed into the bubble along with Spencer and Nova.

"Ohhh my gosh what is going on?!"

"Relax, Jeremiah," Nova giggled, hopping and twirling around before laying down on the soft, squishy bottom of the heart. "It's just a heart hug! Isn't it making you feel better?"

"Well…" the human relaxed a bit and let himself slip down into a sitting position within the giant pink bubble. "Now that you mention it, for some reason I feel like my stress is melting away. Isn't that odd? I'm never this relaxed. Oh my gosh is this some kind of Digimon drug or something? Am I being medicated against my will? What's going on here?!"

"Jerry, you're the only person I've ever seen react to a heart hug this way. Relax. Nothing bad is gonna happen, trust me. Have I steered you wrong yet?"

"Well… You haven't actually steered-"

"Ssshhh, we're almost outside, check it out."

"Wha-?"

Jeremiah glanced around and saw that the bubble, which had been moving through the station, was now flying under the huge, wide-open exit and into the city sky.

Countless lights shone amid the dark night, some blinking, some dancing on electronic billboard signs, and some radiating a steadfast glow from windows and streetlights. The higher the bubble flew, the more of the grand sight they could see - a sleek, shimmering metropolis exuding its nighttime splendor. The Monzaemon didn't allow them to drift too high above his head, however, as he made his way slowly along the city's wide streets. There were what Jeremiah perceived as strange models of cars on those streets, but they were few and far between. Most of the Digimon - and there were many Digimon, more than he could count - seemed to prefer walking. Then again, from the various types he had seen so far, he guessed that most of them probably wouldn't be comfortable in a man-made vehicle.

"Is this your first time in Digital?" Monzaemon asked as he rounded a corner.

"Uh… I, uh…" He didn't know if it was purely the effect of the magical heart balloon, or the wonder of seeing the city from so high up, but Jeremiah was definitely entranced. He didn't even mind that Nova was clearly laughing at him again, and he didn't realized that he had let go of Spencer, whose sleeping body slid into its own space in the heart bubble. He simply sat gazing at the picturesque skyline until the trio was slowly brought closer to the ground once again.

POP! The bubble disappeared, and in an instant Jeremiah found himself sitting on the floor of a hospital that he hadn't even realized he had entered.

"Wh… Oh, alrighty then."

"That was nice," Nova yawned. "But now it's time to get Spencer taken care of."

"I'll take it from here," a new voice announced. Jeremiah looked upward to see Monzaemon placing Spencer onto the back of…

"A centaur?"

"That's a Centarumon," Nova explained sleepily before stretching and yawning again. Then, to the six-limbed Digimon, "Ma'am, are you the doctor around here?"

"I'm one of many," the Centarumon nodded. "Digital has the best medical care in all of Directory."

"Okay, I'll go with you then," the Yuramon said, bouncing a few times before making a mighty leap onto the doctor's shoulder. "Spencer doesn't go anywhere without me, alright?"

"I understand," Centarumon replied, letting out a peal of light-hearted laughter. "Monzaemon, take care of the other human, will you?" Without waiting for an answer, the doctor galloped away down the hall and through a set of double doors.

"He's going to be just fine," Monzaemon said, smiling down at Jeremiah. "Are you hungry, my friend? Do you need any food?"

"I…" The human finally got back up to his feet and glanced around the hospital. For all intents and purposes, it was a hospital just like one might find in the human world, only with much larger dimensions. But instead of humans, there were bizarre creatures everywhere. Dinosaurs, flowers, unnaturally large crabs, and… Was that a clock with a person attached to it, or a person trapped in a clock?

"I… I need to wake up."

\/\/\/\/\/


	3. Faith and Trust

**3\. Faith and Trust**

"It's looking better now," Kaylee said as she stuffed the last of the colorful paper decorations into Triceramon's garbage bin.

"I still can't believe he didn't like it," Coreopsis grumbled under his breath.

"If you had asked first, it wouldn't be such a big deal," Kaylee reminded him.

"I still wouldn't like them," Triceramon said, sweeping the camo-style mat outside his front door. "They're kind of tacky, don't you think?"

"Tacky?!"

"After we worked so hard," Shine whimpered.

"Why don't you tell me more about this 'Kindness Parade'?" Kaylee asked, changing the subject. "What do you guys do? I mean, other than this."

"We go around helping people and fixing problems," Shine said. "That's the plan, anyway."

"But you ended up making the problem in this case," Spike mumbled from her perch atop a stack of boxes.

"We heard that!"

"Why don't you guys try to build a network where everyone can talk about their problems instead?" Kaylee asked. "That way, if a problem comes up that you can help with, you can find out and then go help, instead of jumping to conclusions."

"Why didn't we think of that?" Shine asked, shaking her head.

"You're really smart, Kaylee," Corey grinned. "You should join our team! We could totally use your brains."

"You said it, not me," Triceramon said before whistling innocently.

"We can't catch a break," the Ogremon sighed. "We said we're sorry."

"And I gratefully accept your apology," Triceramon said, suddenly wearing a huge smile and stepping closer to the doorway, "now that you've finished. I appreciate your help. You can leave now." He finished by shifting the smile into a glare at the two, who jumped and bolted immediately.

Kaylee, shrugging, scooped Spike up and cradled him in her arm before turning to follow.

"Hey, human," Triceramon called. Kaylee twirled back around to see the dinosaur Digimon presenting her with a tiny, glowing cube. "I found this while cleaning the spare room. You like shiny things, right? Humans? I mean… I've never met a human before, so I don't know… I just had a feeling I should give it to you."

"Thanks, Triceramon," Kaylee chuckled. "You're really sweet."

"Whatever," the dino coughed. "Just take it and go."

Kaylee reached out to accept the small object, but as soon as Triceramon dropped it into her hand, it rose into the air. The tiny cube swirled around her, leaving a trail of yellow light behind it, before finally flying into the square slot on top of her Digivice.

"Whoa!"

"Unbelievable," Triceramon muttered, wide-eyed.

"It's one of the data cubes," Spike said. "I remember now! We were supposed to go to the temple to meet the people who made these so our Digivices would be complete!" Kaylee gave the slightest nod, tears rolling down her cheeks.

"I remember."

She grabbed the translucent black device hanging from her lanyard and examined it closely, noting the shining new square, the light of which soon faded to leave behind a solid yellow which matched the buttons and the screen's border.

"You don't see that every day," Triceramon grunted. "Baihumon sent you here, huh? I might actually start thinkin' about believin' you."

"Me, too…"

"Hey Kaylee," Shine called, "are you coming along?"

"Be right there," Kaylee answered, letting the Digivice fall back into place and turning around. She turned back to give Triceramon a bow and thank him, then twirled around one more time and followed the Agumon and Ogremon through the jungle.

"Kaylee, are you crying?" Coreopsis asked, gesturing to her cheeks, which she quickly wiped on her jacket sleeves.

"I'm fine. I just have a lot to think about."

"Where do you guys live, anyway?" Spike asked, trying to change the subject.

"Oh, not far from here," Shine said. "See the lights up ahead?"

It was hard not to, in the dark of night. Though fireflies and luminescent trees - whether biological or mechanical - lit up the dark jungle sufficiently to travel, they weren't nearly as bright as the lanterns hanging from a nearby treehouse. The structure was built around a group of three trees and held up on a number of wooden stilts.

"That's your house?"

"Yep! Pretty, isn't it?"

"Yeah, why didn't you do such a great job with Triceramon's house?"

"So cruel," Shine whimpered.

"Kaylee, we need to talk about the mission," Spike cut in. "We need to find that second cube! And the rest of the team."

"One thing at a time," Kaylee said, petting the Punimon's head. "We need to find out where that temple is first. I mean, even knowing where we are would help."

"You've got me."

"We're in the Starlight Jungle," Coreopsis said. "It's near Archive."

"Archive?"

"Doesn't ring a bell," Spike said. "Then again, I haven't been to Directory in a long time. The world changes, you know."

"You guys don't know about Archive Port?" Shine asked, bewildered.

"We haven't been around lately," Spike said. "I guess that's the best way to put it."

"What, in a few centuries?" Coreopsis asked, chuckling. "You mean you guys live that long?"

"I've had a few rebirths, yeah," Spike said. "I've mostly slept, though. What about you, Kaylee?"

"It doesn't work like that where I'm from," Kaylee shook her head. "Well, some people believe in reincarnation, but… If it's real, you definitely don't come back as the same person."

"So you've been alive this whole time?"

"Spike… I told you it's been nineteen years since I left."

"Oh… That must be it. Time doesn't work the same where you live."

"That sounds familiar."

"Here we are," Coreopsis beamed, gesturing to the treehouse as Shine climbed a ladder to the central platform. The others followed suit quickly enough. "Home sweet home. You two can stay here as long as you need."

"Should only be for the night, if I can figure out where I'm going," Kaylee said, making the Ogremon hang his head and nod.

"I understand."

"Hey, I'm not saying I won't join your cause," the human grinned, and Corey's spirits lifted right back up. "I just need to find the places Baihumon wants us to go. Not to mention find the rest of our team."

"Yeah, that would help our chances of surviving by a lot," Spike said.

"So, let's make a map," Kaylee said, unzipping her backpack and retrieving a pencil and notebook. After flipping to a clean page, she set the book down on the wooden floor. "What are some landmarks around this jungle?"

"Well, it's surrounded by the Golden Mountains to the North and East," Corey said.

"And to the South and West by a delta," Shine added.

"Actually, the jungle is pretty much in the delta," the Ogremon corrected. "I don't know if you noticed, but there are waterways all over this place."

"A delta," Kaylee repeated, diligently drawing according to their descriptions.

"And the delta eventually feeds into the bay," Shine said.

"A bay?" Kaylee looked up from her work. "Is Fragment near that? That's where we were headed when we were knocked off-course. I'm sure that's where Baihumon wants us to go."

"The Fragment Islands?" Shine asked. "No, those are way to the South. We're in the Northern half of the continent."

"So, what's between us and Fragment?"

"Um… Desert."

"Yeah?"

"And desert," Shine nodded.

"And even more desert," Corey chuckled. Kaylee gave them both an unamused look.

"Then there's the Sanctuary Woods, and Meditation."

"Meditation!" Kaylee said. "Finally, a name I know. The sacred grove, right?" Coreopsis and Shine looked at each other.

"Um… Actually it's more like a huge building on top of a giant mountain. But it is surrounded by trees, yes."

"Yep," Corey nodded. "Then a little bit of ocean, or gulf or whatever you want to call it, and then there's Fragment." Kaylee nodded, finishing her drawing, then presented the map to them.

"Like this?"

"Uh… Sort of?" Corey shrugged.

"That's not it at all," Shine shook her head. "Here, let me help." Kaylee handed her the pencil, and the Agumon set to work erasing and correcting various lines on the map.

"Wow, you use a pencil well for someone with claws, Shine," Kaylee said.

"Thanks," Shine said, blushing. "You never know when these skills will come in handy." After carefully reconstructing the map, she handed the notebook and pencil back to the human.

"That's… a lot of desert."

"We told you…"

"I'm sure you can catch a lift at Archive, though," Corey said. "They've got the best transport services."

"Archive… You said that's to the East of here?"

"Yep! We can show you the way if you want to."

"Corey!" Shine gasped. "We found someone to help! And a way we can really help them!"

"Yeah!" The two clasped arms and started dancing around the treehouse, coaxing lighthearted laughter from Kaylee and Spike.

"So I guess we have a plan," Spike said. "Travel to Archive and hitch a ride to Fragment. I'm sure the rest of the team will make it there somehow."

"Right. And even if Baihumon's too busy, the sages in the village should know what we're supposed to do."

"If the village is still there…"

"We have to keep hope alive, Spike," Kaylee shook her head. "No matter what."

"Right," the red blob cheered, hopping up and down. "Keep hope alive!"

\/\/\/\/\/

"My name is Destini. What's yours?"

"My siblings call me Splash," the tiny Crabmon replied.

"Nice to meet you, Splash. What are you doing awake at this hour?"

"I can't sleep," the crab monster said, peering back toward the sandy bank he had crawled from. They were both under the protective watch of Shellmon, who was wading in the inlet. The Crabmon's family peacefully slumbered in the shallows, not far from where Destini had been walking when she knelt down to talk to him.

"Nightmares?" He nodded at this. "Ohh, I've been there. I used to keep my mom up all the time, always coming into her room at the dead of night. Know how I got rid of them?"

"N-no, how?"

"I started singing songs to them to make them feel better." The Crabmon let out a loud giggle.

"What? Really?"

"Well, I figured… Nobody really WANTS to be mean and make you miserable. If they're acting that way, they must be miserable themselves. So maybe if I helped them feel better, they'd go about their business and let me sleep better. And I always felt better when my mom sang to _me,_ so…"

"Did it work?"

"Yep! Now I only get nightmares every now and then. And when I do, I sing a song until I fall back to sleep, and they're gone again."

"Wow! I think I'll try that! I know a song they'd like."

"Sounds great," Destini said, patting his blue shell. "Sweet dreams, little guy." Splash crawled back to the water. No sooner had he nestled into the sand, than Shellmon raised one of his arms out of the water.

"Hey, Spruce," he called, staring skyward. Destini followed his gaze, and against the pale blues and oranges of the early morning sky she could see a large black Digimon gliding gracefully above them. The creature recognized the Shellmon and descended to the sandy bank, lowering his wings and head in a bow to Destini once he landed.

"Whoa, a Devidramon," Destini exclaimed.

"Good evening, blessed one. Shellmon, would this human by chance be your guest?"

"I'm looking after her for the time being, yes."

"I see. Blessed one, would that Zurumon sleeping in your arms happen to be your partner Digimon?"

"Fossil? Yes, he is. Why?"

"Then it's true that you are a real human."

"A real…?"

"You were seen falling from the sky some time ago. You and several other humans. Were you chosen by Baihumon?"

"I… We were last time. But I haven't seen her since… Well, I was a little girl back then."

"I understand. Would you be so kind as to grace Archive with your presence? Our regent needs to speak with you. With… all of the Chosen, really, but… You're the only one we've been able to find so far. Would you happen to be the leader?" Upon hearing this question, Destini exhaled slowly.

"Our leader was a boy named August. He died. He was murdered by a Digimon." The Devidramon reared back his head at this, and knelt down on all fours.

"Oh, I…" He fidgeted around for a few seconds before speaking again. "That's terrible, I… I'm so sorry."

"No, it's… It was a long time ago. Come on, I'll speak to your regent. I can tell them the whole story. Hey, Shellmon!" Destini turned back to her aquatic friend with an energetic wave. "When Jerry comes back, please tell him where I went. I'll ask someone to come pick him up later!"

"Sounds like a plan!" The human woman gave him a smile before turning back to the Devidramon.

"Can I…?"

"It will be an honor to carry one of the Chosen," Spruce said, lifting up his wings to allow Destini to sit on his back.

"Shellmon, thank you so much for everything! I'll see you around?"

"I'll look forward to it!"

\/\/\/\/\/

"…And then they told us WE ate too much! Can you believe that?"

Jeremiah smiled when he heard Nova's voice chirping from the hospital room. At least he wouldn't have to worry about forgetting the number.

"Sounds like a wild ride," he could hear Spencer reply. "Still can't believe you went on all those adventures without me."

"Hey, what did you expect me to do? I had to keep living. More than once, actually."

"Well yeah, but your little V-pet thingy wasn't turned on. I didn't even give you any batteries for at least… a decade, maybe longer."

"Yeah, because you forgot about me…"

"I said I'm sorry! Oh, hey, Jeremiah, right?" The blue-haired man greeted with a wave when the older human entered the room.

"That's me. Are you feeling better?"

"Yeah, I'm moving around and everything. Just waiting on some paperwork now. Thanks so much, man. I'd be gone without you."

"I just jumped into action without really thinking about it," Jeremiah laughed nervously, taking a seat on the nearby cot. "Funny thing is, I've been convinced I'm dreaming, but… Now I'm not so sure."

"Never had a shared dream before," Spencer shrugged. "But I'm sure that's not what this is. My memories started to come back right before we got beamed up or… however you want to say it."

"It's no use with that one, Spencer," Nova spoke up. "He's… well, he's something else."

"I'm right here," Jeremiah said.

"Anyway," Spencer coughed, picking Nova up and running his fingers through her white wavy hairs, "believe me when I say, this is real. I've been here before. Me and my friends were called here by Baihumon. That's probably the case now, too, come to think of it… But last time, she showed herself and told us what was up. I'm not sure why that's changed, but I've got a bad feeling about it."

"Who is this Baihumon I keep hearing about?"

"Baihumon is… She's one of the gods of the Digital World. She watches over 'the West'. Which happens to include where we are."

"But you… don't know where she is?"

"Yeah… Like I said, something's wrong. But I'm sure she'll make her wishes known to us somehow… Soon… I hope."

"Spencer Torres?"

The three turned their attention to a Leomon standing in the doorway.

"Th-that's me," Spencer said, slowly rising from the hospital bed. "Leo… No, you're not the same one, are you?"

"I don't recall ever meeting a true human," the bipedal lion shook his head. "In any case, if it's not too much trouble, there's someone who would like a word with you. With all four of you."

"Four?" Jeremiah asked. As if on cue, he was once again reminded of Donatello's existence when the Pabumon cried for more food.

"Sure thing," Spencer smiled as the older man dropped vending machine snacks into the baby's open mouth.

"I'll come along, too," Jeremiah said, rising to his feet. "But are the bathrooms closer wherever we're going? This one had an accident earlier and I'd like to avoid that in the future." Donny started crying again, though he refused any more food his human tried to give him. "What do you want now?"

"I think you made him feel embarrassed," Nova sighed. "You'll get the hang of this eventually, Jerry."

"I told you, my name's not Jerry."

"Jerry," cheered the tiny, pale green blob in the man's hands, apparently forgetting his distress for the time being. "Jerry! Jerry!"

"See what you did?" Jeremiah asked, glaring at Nova.

"Jerry! Jerry!"

"Hey, he spoke," Spencer grinned. "I remember the first time Nova spoke. Her first word was 'Up'."

"Spencer, you're embarrassing me," Nova groaned.

"If the four of you are ready," Leomon spoke up, clearing his throat, "I'll guide the way."

The humans and their partners were led across the hospital and through an exterior hallway that connected it to another building, Donatello happily shouting "Jerry" the whole way. Through the glass panes surrounding the walkway, they could see that the sun had begun to rise over a vast forest far away on the horizon. They passed several types of Digimon on their way, from tiny Pixiemon to gargantuan Cherubimon. Spencer waved and greeted the majority of them, while Jeremiah simply stared in awe. When they reached the next building, a massive humanoid bird was waiting for them in the atrium, flanked by two Pidmon.

"Garudamon," Spencer half-whispered, in awe of the bird Digimon.

"General Pentas, if you please," the Garudamon said with a slight bow.

"An honor, General," Jeremiah said, straightening up his posture and giving them a salute. "Sergeant Jeremiah Dean, at your service."

"I thank you for that. At ease."

"And I'm… just Spencer," the blue-haired musician chuckled.

"We're their partners," Nova cut in. "I'm Nova, and that's Donny over there."

"Jerry!" the Pabumon cheered.

"Pardon my appearance, General, I'm usually not this tiny."

"It's an honor and privilege to meet four of the Chosen," General Pentas said. "I wish it could be under better circumstances, but… That's not how this works, is it?" The two humans exchanged glances.

"Not sure what you mean, General," Jeremiah said.

"You did come here to help us in the war, did you not?"

"Um…"

"We're not sure why we're here," Spencer said. "Last time we came to the Digital World, Baihumon gave us specific instructions. This time… I don't think she got a chance. Something attacked us on our way. She did manage to make sure we landed safely, and reactivate our Digivices, but… I haven't seen her since. And we're still separated from our friends."

"I'm glad _somebody_ knows what's going on," Jeremiah whistled.

"But if it's Baihumon's will that we all ended up here, then I'm sure she intended us to help put an end to this war you mentioned. We've been through things like that before."

"Yeah," Nova chirped. "Like that time we stopped RizeGreymon from destroying Digi City."

"Wait, that was you?" one of the Pidmon asked, turning their attention to Spencer. "I thought you looked familiar!"

"Nah, it can't be," the other Pidmon shook their head.

"What's all this?" the General asked.

"Well General, there's a statue of five Digimon and six human children in the Old Market," one of the angel Digimon began. "Back when we had community service, we had to clean it. The plaque said something about Chosen Children defending the city when a RizeGreymon went mad and attacked. The whole thing looked like nobody had touched it in years."

"Anyway, there's a little girl, er, person, who looks a lot like this man here." They gestured to Spencer. "They're depicted riding the back of a Kokatorimon."

"That was me," Nova cheered. "I didn't know we had a statue."

"Pretty cool, huh?" Spencer asked, blushing.

"I'd like to see this statue," General Pentas said, stepping forward. "Show me."

"Gladly, sir," the Pidmon said in unison, gliding swiftly away.

"This is getting way too complex for a dream," Jeremiah mumbled.

\/\/\/\/\/

"How much farther is this place?"

"I could try throwing you up the mountain," BlackTailmon suggested.

"No, thanks," Alraumon whimpered, clinging to Zayden's leg.

"We're all a bit tired, aren't we?" Zayden asked, getting a nod from Polaris, who was resting on his shoulder. "Maybe we should stop for a breath and a drink of water?"

BlackTailmon twirled around and glared at him, but her gaze softened when she saw the panting jellyfish.

"Fine. Five minutes." The gang cheered at this. "We can all get a proper rest when we get to the hall. Which will be soon."

"You said 'soon' like an hour ago," Alraumon said.

"I can throw you off the mountain if you'd prefer," the feline Digimon grinned.

"No way! You can't do that! Zayden, tell her she can't do that!"

"Stop antagonizing him, BG," Zayden panted as he took a seat on the hot dirt and stone.

"I told you not to call me that."

"I'm sorry, but syllables take energy," the human said, fanning his face with his hand.

"Good gods," BlackTailmon muttered under her breath. "I wonder why Baihumon chose someone so out of shape."

"What?"

"I said it's only seven in the morning, it can't be that hot," she lied, louder this time.

"True, but you have to admit, we've been walking for a long time."

"I promise, we're almost there. The first entrance is just at the top of this next slope."

"Oh, then what are we waiting for?" Alraumon jumped up and ran full-speed up the mountainside.

"Wasn't he the main one complaining about needing a break?" BlackTailmon asked, shaking her head. "I don't understand that one."

"At least he's motivated," Zayden chuckled, rising to his feet once again. "Ready, Polaris?"

"You're the one doing the work, Zay," the tiny jellyfish giggled as she was picked up and placed back on his shoulder. "You tell me."

The sun was momentarily covered by clouds just as they approached a large doorway that opened up into a vast entrance hall carved into the mountain itself. The entrance was four times Zayden's height, and twice the width.

"Don't believe in doors, do you, ma'am?"

"Our arms are open to all in need," BlackTailmon said, her tone suddenly changing, as if reciting something from memory. "This fact must be symbolized at all times by our open threshold."

"What about enemies?"

"Lady Holydramon trusts her disciples to do what they must."

"I guess I've learned that first-hand," Alraumon mumbled, sending Zayden and Polaris into a fit of laughter. "But that's alright! Because I'm going to stick with you until I get stronger!"

"Since you're planning on toughening yourself up," BlackTailmon grinned, "I'll help out by not being so nice to you anymore."

"Nice?!"

Zayden had another laugh at this, though he was now paying more attention to the great number of Digimon going this way and that across the atrium. Most of them were what Zayden recognized to be Holy Beast types, passing from one door to another, from upstairs to downstairs and vice versa as quickly as possible.

"It's a madhouse," Alraumon blurted out. "Is it always like this?"

"Of course not, this is just lunch hour. everyone is passing between classes and whatnot."

"So you have a school here, too?" Zayden asked.

"Meditation Hall is, first and foremost, a facility to develop the minds and bodies of Digital Monsters."

"So, what you're saying is, you're playing hooky today?" Alraumon guffawed.

"I'm not a student!" The other three laughed loudly at BlackTailmon, gaining their small group the attention of the entire atrium for a moment before they all went on with their business.

"Back early, BlackTailmon?" called a Digimon that Zayden knew very well. He wore white and blue, and had three pairs of white, feathery wings unfurled behind his back.

"A real Angemon," he blurted out, before placing a hand over his mouth.

"Yes, I'm back," BlackTailmon said with a smile. "And I've made quite a discovery. This man here…" at the word "man", she pushed Zayden forward, and he stumbled a few steps closer to Angemon. "His name is Zayden. He seems to be a Chosen. I'd like to get him an audience with Lady Holydramon."

"That sounds like the best course of action," Angemon said, the tiniest inflection of pride sneaking into his voice. "Unfortunately, Lady Holydramon isn't here; she's gone off to Archive Port to speak as a guest in their council. She won't return for several days. I apologize for the inconvenience, young man."

"Oh! No, that's fine," Zayden stammered. "I didn't ask for-"

"What council?" BlackTailmon asked. "What's going on?"

"You didn't get the news?" This made the feline Digimon sigh heavily.

"Angemon, you know no one around here talks to me."

"I'll… tell you once we get our guests settled," he said, gliding away. "Zayden, was it? Follow me."

"Oh, you really don't have to-"

"Don't be rude," BlackTailmon cut him off. "He's going out of his way for you, even though he could choose not to. You could show a little appreciation."

"Oh, that's not it… I am thankful," he said, running to catch up with the winged Digimon. "Please, lead the way."

"You're way too hard on our guests," Angemon chuckled, leading the group up a flight of stairs.

"So, how long have you two been living here?" Zayden asked.

"As far back as we can remember," BlackTailmon said. "We were both hatched here, because we had spent our previous few lives in the service of Lady Holydramon."

"Wait, how old is Lady Holydramon anyway?"

"This one is annoying," the feline Digimon sighed. "He asks way too many questions."

"There's no such thing, in my opinion," Angemon said with a smile. "As to your question, Zayden, I don't know. No one has ever asked, as far as I'm aware. Feel free to ask her when you meet her."

"Just not the very first time you meet her," BlackTailmon added. "It would be rude. First impressions are everything, you know."

"Haven't you ever heard the phrase 'Don't judge a book by its cover'?" Zayden asked.

"He's got you there, Metz," Angemon laughed.

"Angemon, I asked you not to call me that in public!" BlackTailmon hissed.

"I'm truly sorry, old friend," the winged mon said, pausing and turning back for a moment to look into her eyes. "I forgot myself for a moment. I won't let it happen again."

"Where did you get that nickname, BlackTailmon?" Zayden asked with a grin as the party kept moving. His smile soon disappeared when the feline shot him a cold glare.

"You don't need to know. As a matter of fact, if you ever tell anyone else about it, you'll get to learn how painful my claws really are. Will that satisfy your curiosity?"

"Point taken," Zayden laughed nervously.

"We've arrived," Angemon announced as he came to a halt. He opened a door and let more light shine in from up ahead, and led them into a wide corridor with a high ceiling. The walls were a soft pink color, and the floor was covered with carpet of a darker shade, almost red.

Another Digimon was running through this hall, followed closely by - to Zayden's surprise - a human. Or at least, that was what she appeared to be. The most striking difference was two green wing symbols, one on each cheek, and a long, broad, green line running down each arm, visible from where the sleeves of her black and white polo shirt ended.

"Penguinmon, Fayruz," Angemon greeted, "just the two I wanted to see."

"You had a new mission for us, sir?" the one called Fayruz asked as she and her companion both saluted the Champion Digimon.

"Yes, but it'll be put on hold in light of recent events.

"Understood, sir!" Penguinmon said.

"For now, all I need from you two is to arrange an empty room for our new guests." Here he waved a hand in Zayden's direction, and the young man stepped forward with a bow of his head.

"I'm Zayden, and this is my partner, Polaris," he said, holding the Poyomon a bit higher as he said her name. "Alraumon is with me, too."

"A room for three, then, is it?" Penguinmon asked, and they all nodded. "Very well, we've got just the room for you. Follow me, please. Fayruz, have you got the keys?"

"Certainly," the human said, slapping a hand against a large ring weighed down by a gargantuan number of keys. This ring was fastened around her belt and hanging down from her waist.

"You should stick with them for a while, BlackTailmon," Angemon said. "I'll have someone cover your area."

"Only for you, Angemon," the black and violet mon sighed. "Alright, boys and girl. Let's go." She took off after Penguinmon and Anthony, but the other three stayed behind for a moment.

"She's rough on us," Zayden whispered. "But when she's around Angemon, it's like she's a whole different person." The other two got a giggle out of this.

"I said move it!"

\/\/\/\/\/

"Wow, all of that is Archive?"

Destini had to yell just to be heard, with the wind roaring against them. She was riding on the back of her new Devidramon friend for the second time that day, with Fossil nestled snug in the pocket of her hoodie. She was grateful for the jacket, but traveling so high up in the air, she wished she had brought more layers.

"Yes, blessed one," Spruce shouted back, flapping his leathery wings. "The mountains, the buildings, the bay, are all within our regency. The entire city you see before you is known as Archive Port."

The mountains he referred to were three large peaks within a long mountain range. These three peaks acted as natural barriers for the city to the South and West, shielding it from view. Meanwhile, it was wide open from the North and East, accessible on foot from the tree-spotted plains or through the bay, if one had the aquatic means.

"Hey Spruce, you know, you can just call me Destini?"

"Destiny, eh?" the Devidramon thought out loud. "How appropriate."

"I couldn't hear you, sorry!"

"Only thinking of how the gods work in mysterious ways," he said, raising his voice once again.

"Too true, man! Too true."

"And I'm Fossil," the Zurumon shouted from her pocket. "Don't forget it!"

"Not any time soon, my friend," Spruce laughed. "I'll do my best."

When they reached the edge of the city, Spruce touched down on the battlements of a colossal steel tower, where a Devimon and Pidmon stood watch with a fire dancing in a pit between them.

"Checking in from my last search, ma'am, sir," Spruce said, bowing his head to the two watchers.

"You found one," the Devimon said, staring in awe at the sight of Destini.

"Welcome to our city, Chosen Child," the Pidmon said, bowing low. "Spruce, they've just started the first session. You might want to step on it."

"He's going as fast as he can," Destini said, patting the Devidramon on the side of his head. "Where are we headed, anyway?"

"The Temple of Purity," Devimon said, pointing with his long index finger toward a building built to give the appearance of a flower blooming from its roof. "It's not far from here."

"On our way," Spruce said, flapping his wings to lift off once again. The two watchers waved at them as they flew through the city skyline, weaving this way and that to avoid a skyscraper or another flying Digimon. Soon enough, he alighted on a wide balcony carved into the shape of a lily petal, and Destini hopped off as fast as she could.

"There's an important meeting in the auditorium at this moment," declared a Knightmon who approached them from the interior. "Wait…" He glanced from Spruce to Destini, then back to the Devidramon. "Spruce… Is she…?"

"She is," he nodded. "I present Destini of Baihumon's Chosen."

"I'll alert them at once," the armored Digimon said with a bow before turning and running the other way.

"Thanks, Knightmon," Destini cheered with a wave.

"Well, I guess you'd better get going," Spruce chuckled. "I'll be resting here for a while. It's been an honor."

"You really are a magnificent flyer," the human woman said, running her palm gently over the Devidramon's smooth skin.

"You flatter me, Destini. I apologize that we didn't arrive sooner, but one can only carry a passenger for so long without a rest."

"No, no, you were perfect," she shook her head. "And I promise I'll find a way to repay you for this someday."

"Blessed one, the honor of being the one to bring you here is more than I will ever require," he said, bowing once again.

"Stop that!" She tapped her knuckles lightly on his shoulder. "Anyway, honor doesn't put food in your belly. Now, I keep my promises. Um, when I remember, anyway…"

"I know what you mean. But enough dawdling over me. You've got a council to crash. Go wow them."

"I'll try," she said, lowering her jacket's cream-colored hood and taking in a deep breath. As she exhaled, she finally took a step forward. "Thanks again, Spruce. You're one in a million. Don't forget!"

"I won't."

The archway that Destini passed through led into an interior balcony that circled above a wide auditorium, where there was a massive assembly. She nodded to the Growmon and Karatenmon standing at the top of the stairs and descended. She couldn't help blushing when more and Digimon in the assembly fixed their attention in her direction, so that by the time she reached the bottom of the stairway, she had arrived to a completely silent meeting, with all eyes on her.

"This way," Knightmon said, waving her toward the central platform. Destini nodded, trying to swallow whatever invisible force that was making her throat tighten and heart beat out of control, and stepped forward, eyes glued to the floor. She arrived at the center… Turned to her right… And looked up.

The first ones she saw were a Jyureimon, MarineDevimon, and FlameWizardmon. The latter was leaning on his staff and letting his right leg rest idly, giving off an air of nonchalance, but all three were staring intently at the human, waiting patiently for her to introduce herself. The seats in the auditorium were filled with more Digimon than she could ever imagine. She noticed plenty of Devimon, Goblimon, Guilmon, and Bakemon, as well as Angemon, Pidmon, Patamon and Agumon. Among the crowd she could spot a few Wisemon, Guardramon, Coelamon, and even a lone ChaosDukemon, among many others she could go on listing forever, but then…

"Thank you for honoring us with your presence." It was the Jyureimon who spoke. "My name is Stella. I'm the regent of this fair city, and these are my advisors." She gestured to the MarineDevimon and FlameWizardmon in turn, her branches shaking as she did so. "Rana and Salamander." The two bowed their heads upon being introduced.

"It's great to meet you," Destini finally said. "To meet all of you," she added, twirling around to acknowledge the crowd seated in the auditorium. She returned her attention to the three at the fore before continuing. "I'm Destini. That's my name, I mean. Destini Hazel-Dean. I heard you wanted to see me, Your Excellency."

"Indeed," the Jyureimon nodded, sending leaves falling from her branches. "It was my wish that all of the Chosen come to our aid. Tell me, where is your partner?"

"Right here!" Fossil leaped out of her pocket and bounced on the floor. "I'm Fossil. Yes, yes, it's true, I helped save the world, no big deal."

"Well aren't you modest," Destini said, giving him a stern look.

"What?" Fossil grinned.

"But you've only just arrived, isn't that true?" This time it was the MarineDevimon, Rana.

"Yes, we just got back," Destini nodded. "I was chosen by Baihumon, along with five…" She closed her eyes for a moment, taking in a deep breath. "Along with six others. The seventh has only just now joined us. Six of us were tested on the island of Fragment, the first time we came. I've been told it's a group of islands now. I don't know how much time has passed, but I do know that I hadn't heard of Archive at all last time I was here." This sent many of the assembled Digimon into conversations among themselves.

"Quiet down, everyone," commanded the FlameWizardmon, Salamander, before returning his attention to the human. "Blessed one, the regency of Archive has existed these past eight centuries. You can't have visited Directory in that time without as much as hearing about it, now could you?"

"If I recall correctly," added Rana, "there haven't been any Chosen here for… a millennium, at the very least."

"A thousand years?" Destini fell backward onto the marble floor, and remained sitting there with her face buried in her hand.

"Deedee!" Her Zurumon partner bounced toward her and waited patiently for her to speak.

"A thousand years… That means all my friends are gone."

"Not all of them."

Destini turned her gaze to the left, wiping her tears away to see a gargantuan dragon with pink fur approaching her, with two shining golden orbs floating around her body. At least, that was what she saw with her eyes. But somehow, when she looked at the dragon, something deep inside of her saw a tiny purple Digimon with wings on its head.

"Tsukaimon?" she gasped. The dragon nodded. Not that Destini could see the gesture, as she closed her eyes against even more tears, which she soon wiped on the Digimon's pink fur when she hugged her and buried her face in her side.

"Lady Holydramon," Stella said, clearing her throat. "Would you be kind enough to tell us exactly what is going on, since our guest seems… indisposed?"

"Gladly, Your Excellency," the dragon Digimon said with a bow. "When I was very young, before the gods granted me immortality, I met five Digimon and their six Chosen humans. It was Zayden, the shy boy, and his Patamon that I met first. They introduced me to Destini and Fossil - hello there, by the way, old friend."

"Nice to see you, too," the Zurumon yawned. "Looks like you've moved up in the world." The Holy Dragon Digimon cleared her throat, ignoring that statement for the time being.

"Then there was Stacy and her Piyomon, Nova."

"Stacy is actually Spencer," Destini said, raising up a finger. "He was a boy, we just didn't know."

"Spencer and his Piyomon, Nova," Lady Holydramon corrected herself. "Kaylee and her Elecmon, Spike… And Ryu the Agumon, with his two humans, August and Ellowin."

"I can't believe you've remembered all those names after all this time," Fossil whistled. "Too much effort, if you ask me."

"I remember all who showed me kindness, especially when I didn't think I deserved it. And that includes you, mister."

"Whatever you're talking about, I'll deny it," Fossil said, sticking out his tongue.

"Can we get on with the explaining?" Salamander asked. "We've got a lot of ground to cover."

"Certainly," Lady Holydramon nodded. "I saw them save this town, that village… Turn away this or that Digimon bent on destroying or hurting something or another, over and over again. I befriended the group and joined them on their travels, which eventually took them far north, to where the Stratos Plateau is now. That was where they were defeated by Omegamon."

For just a few seconds, the auditorium had gone deathly silent. Then, more of the crowd murmuring among themselves.

"You didn't have to leave in that part," Fossil grumbled.

"So, you're from a team of Chosen who failed." It was Salamander who finally spoke up. More murmuring.

"That's true, but they were chosen again," Lady Holydramon said. "If Baihumon puts her faith in them, then so do I."

"Well said," Stella nodded, clapping her hands. "At any rate, that particular Omegamon and their lackeys were all destroyed a thousand years ago, so they're not our problem. This new threat is very different. And if Baihumon says these are the right humans, then I say they're the ones for the job." Many cheers were made to this. "That is, if that's what you choose to do." She extended her hand outward in a gesture to Destini, who finally rose to her feet and wiped away her tears.

"I'm not sure what exactly we were called back for," the woman said, glancing to the left and right here and there, but mostly keeping her attention fixed on the three in the center. "It could be to lend a hand with whatever small problems we can help with. Or it could be something really big. Until I'm told otherwise, and until we can reunite our team, I suppose I'll just have to use my best judgment. So, Your Excellency, tell me what you need help with, and I'll do the best I can. You have the word of a Digidestined."

\/\/\/\/\/

"This is it."

"Wow, was I ever that little?" Spencer laughed.

"Yes, I remember it vividly," Nova said. "Good times. Except the whole, you not being comfortable thing."

"Yeah, but now we can have even better times," He said, hugging his Yuramon partner.

The two humans and their partners, as well as General Pentas and the two Pidmon, stood in front of a carefully-carved memorial depicting, just as the Pidmon had said, five Digimon and six humans. The city seemed to have sprouted up around it and pushed in against it, leaving it stranded in a lonely alley in a desolate part of the marketplace.

"That's definitely Destini," Jeremiah said, peering up at the part of the memorial that showed a little girl with extremely curly hair riding atop a DarkTyrannomon's head. "I've been shown plenty photos of her younger days. And of course she would have the dinosaur Digimon. Er, one of them." He glanced at another dinosaur shape, this one wearing a horned helmet. "…That's Greymon, right? I at least remember that one's name."

"Yeah, that's Ryu," Nova said. "August and Ellie's partner."

"So one Digimon had two human partners? That's a thing?"

"Apparently," Spencer shrugged. "The virtual pet was originally Auggie's but he gave it to Ellie, so we never really questioned it."

"That's all I need to know," General Pentas said, stretching his wings. "You guys are the real deal!"

"Well… We also kind of… Got wrecked later on," Spencer said. "The one who threatened the world, Omegamon… We couldn't defeat him."

"But that's only because we couldn't get to the cubes in time," Nova said defensively. "It's not fair! We were so close."

"The cubes!" Spencer hugged the Yuramon close and gave her a kiss between the eyes, which made her sneeze. "Nova, you genius! That's what we needed to do! Get the cubes from the shrine. That must be what Baihumon wants us to do."

"Where is this shrine?" Pentas asked.

"Um… North? Very far North. We walked a lot, I remember that part."

"Do you think it's on the plateau?" one of the Pidmon asked the other.

"Worth a shot," the other shrugged. "I don't know of any shrine anywhere else up North."

"I want a plane prepped to take them there within the hour," the Garudamon ordered.

"But General, the storms…"

"I don't care, make it an armored carrier if you have to. I want these men at their best and brightest. Er… Hold on, what do these cubes do?"

"I've never met such a whimsical commanding officer," Jeremiah whispered under his breath, slapping a palm to his forehead.

"Baihumon's servants were making a cube to fit into each Digivice," Nova said. "Spencer, show him." The human presented Pentas with the blue device hanging around his neck, showing the top side with a square gap. "It's to give it extra power it didn't originally have, so we can become stronger. We were right in front of the shrine when Omegamon blocked us off and started… well, kicking our rears."

"Sir, perhaps we should ensure they're willing to help us beforehand?" one of the Pidmon suggested.

"I'm sure they'd want to help regardless," Pentas laughed. "I mean, they're the good guys. Baihumon wouldn't choose them otherwise, right?"

"We'd be happy to help you," Jeremiah said, "once we know the details of this war you mentioned. But while we're on the subject of helping each other, my wife needs medical care. I couldn't bring her with me for fear of making her injury worse, but if you could dispatch someone…?"

"Of course, of course," Pentas said with a smile. "We'll have her right as rain in no time. Where can we find her?"

"Ah… Well… There's an inlet North of the desert. I walked from there to the train station… If you want to call it that."

"That doesn't sound good," one of the Pidmon said.

"Hold on, how far in from the coast were you?" the other asked.

"Pretty much all the way," Jeremiah shrugged. "At the edge of a tropical forest, it looked like."

"Oh no."

"Why? What's wrong?"

"That's pretty close to Archive," Pentas explained as he and the Pidmon ran back toward the market. The two humans followed after, their partners in hand. "We can go on the quest for the cubes and whatnot later, but we need to get to your wife _now._ "

"Why? What is this 'Archive'?"

"'What's Archive?'," one of the Pidmon chortled, though their laughter stopped abruptly soon after. "That's right, you really don't know."

"Archive is the nation we're at war against," Pentas explained, grabbing the humans and taking to the air. "They've been attacking the city for months now."

"Why didn't you tell us that before?"

"I was leading into it," the Garudamon blushed.

"Anyway, Archive is a very dangerous place," said one of the Pidmon, both of whom were now soaring alongside Pentas.

"It's mostly full of Virus Digimon, and they're practiced in many lethal arts," explained the other.

"Virus Digimon aren't inherently bad," Spencer pointed out.

"Well, sure, if you catch them early and raise them right," the Pidmon nodded.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Nova growled.

"What? Nothing, I didn't mean anything by it."

"You know, I've got the code of Kuwagamon in my Digicore somewhere? Maybe I'll do that? Huh? Evolve into a giant stag beetle and get 'dangerous' on you?"

"Nova, calm down," Spencer whispered, clinging tighter to the Yuramon for fear of her slipping away and falling.

"I hate people who talk like that, Spencer," she fumed. "I hate it!"

"I know, I know, it's okay. Let's just go check on Deedee and Fossil. First things first, okay? First things first."

"It's not okay," she said, tears falling from her tiny eyes. "It's not."

\/\/\/\/\/

"A war," Destini said, letting out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding. She, the regent, and Lady Holydramon were strolling through a beautiful flower garden next door to the Temple of Purity, which connected to it on multiple levels. Rather, it was Destini and Stella doing the strolling, and the Holydramon floating among them.

"It's a lot to take in," Stella nodded. "I'm sorry we had to drop all of this on you at once."

"I just don't understand, you've both been attacked, right? Don't you think someone else is trying to get you guys to fight each other?"

"That's exactly what I was thinking," Lady Holydramon nodded. "I've tried to convince the mayor of Digital, but, to no avail."

"Not surprised," the Jyureimon shook her head. "He's been unreasonable this entire time. I can't believe, after all these years of friendship…"

"Now, Stella, you have to admit, you haven't quite been the voice of reason lately, either."

"True," Stella said, taking in a deep breath and letting it go before continuing. "I just get so riled up every time I hear about them attacking our people. That's why I closed off the mountain passes."

"Oh yeah, Shellmon mentioned that," Destini said. "Oh! I hope those scouts find Jer and Donny soon."

"They've been ordered not to move from that spot until your husband returns," Stella reminded her, not for the first time. "Don't worry, blessed one, he'll be safe and sound before you know it."

"I know, I just wish I could've convinced him to stay put. But he's always gotta do things just so, you know?"

"I can't believe you got married," Holydramon said, excitedly waving her forelegs. "I can't wait to meet him. Did you tell him any of our stories?"

"I did, but he thought I was making it all up. You know, Earthlings and all that. No one ever takes you for your word over there. It's outrageous."

"Well, you have to give him some credit," Stella said, stopping to sniff at a group of oxeye daisies before gesturing for them to follow her downstairs. "You don't just see Digimon all the time in that world. As for me, just thinking about a world of all humans and no Digimon is a fair stretch, so it's understandable."

"I suppose," Destini shrugged. "Then again, I've always had a good suspension of disbelief. I'm a bit different from most folks in my world, I'd bet."

"Now that, I wouldn't argue," Holydramon laughed.

"Hey, does the council meet at this temple every time?" Destini asked. "I could get used to walking around here."

"It varies," Stella said. "The next meeting will be at the Temple of Knowledge, which is on campus grounds, so that should give you plenty of great walking adventures. Especially if you go to the library."

"Oh, the university does have the best library," Lady Holydramon said. "Besides the one at Meditation, of course."

"Is that vanity I detect in your voice?" Stella asked jokingly. "Miss 'Symbol of Divinity'?"

"No one is perfect," the dragon Digimon said with a sidelong glance at her vegetation friend.

"Amen to that," Destini nodded. "Oh hey, the Crest of Sincerity!" The first-floor exit from the garden led directly to the ground floor of the temple, which Destini hadn't seen yet. A large, green teardrop symbol was painted on the floor, and woven into many tapestries hanging from the walls.

"Purity," Lady Holydramon corrected. "Sincerity is the cross-shape."

"Oh, right, sub and dub differences," the woman said, shaking her head. "Interesting to note it's all the same here."

"They do have a Temple of Sincerity here. It's in a nice spot by a park and an inn."

"Speaking of which, where will you be staying?" Stella asked.

"Um… I don't really know the city. And I don't have any money."

"You can have my suite," Holydramon said. "I'm hardly here to use it."

"A suite?" Destini asked, mouth wide. "Honey, are you sure?"

"Why wouldn't I be? You're one of my best friends, Deedee. I know we haven't seen each other in a millennia, but…"

"Well, it's been more like nineteen years for me…"

"Twenty years, a thousand years, really, what's the difference when you miss somebody?" This was answered with yet another hug from the human.

"And as far as the money problem, we'll keep you in the city's employ," Stella said.

"Ooh, good idea," Holydramon nodded.

"What will I do?"

"Oh, we'll think of something. But while we settle all those things, we must help you find the rest of your teammates. Can't save the world if you're not together, am I right?"

"And that's to stop the war, not to continue it, right, sis?" Holydramon asked, staring at the Jyureimon expectantly. Stella took in a deep breath, closed her eyes, then opened them and exhaled.

"I promise we won't launch any more attacks on Digital. For the time being. But if they keep pushing-"

"You leave the pushing to me," the dragon Digimon said confidently. "Now that I have proof that Baihumon is on the side of peace, and once we send Deedee out with the white flag, we'll get through that hard head of his."

"I want to believe," Stella nodded. "I really want to believe that stubborn goat will-"

"Believe in me, sis," Holydramon said. "Believe in Baihumon. And believe in the Chosen."

"Right." Stella took in another deep breath and raised her tea cup. "To the Chosen."

"To the Chosen!"

\/\/\/\/\/

"That's a plane from Digital," Shellmon pointed out, waving at a blue and silver aircraft overhead.

"Oh, no," Spruce sighed. "I don't like the looks of this."

"Maybe it's a peaceful mission," suggested ChaosDukemon, one of the troops elected to bring back Destini's husband safely.

"Is there such a thing anymore?" This was asked by her companion, a Megadramon.

The machine touched down at the edge of the jungle, and out ran a very upset-looking human wearing a camo jacket.

"Hey, Jeremiah," Shellmon greeted. "So good to see you're okay!"

"That's the guy?" asked ChaosDukemon.

"Yep, Destini's husband, Jeremiah. He's alright. Wound a bit too tight, but very nice."

"Shellmon," Jeremiah panted as he approached, out of breath. "Destini… Where…?"

"Oh, she left for Archive this morning," the aquatic Digimon said.

"Archive? Are you sure?"

"I escorted her personally, blessed one," Spruce said, giving the human a low bow. "I can assure you, she is safe in the Temple of Purity as we speak."

"I don't know that that means."

"What's up?" Spencer asked as he approached the group. "Did you find her?"

"She's at Archive already."

"The place they're at war with?"

"Not for long, hopefully," ChaosDukemon said.

"I'm sorry, who are you guys?"

"I am ChaosDukemon, member of Archive's elite knights. This is my comrade, Megadramon. And of course, this Devidramon is Spruce, one of the regent's own personal messengers. We were sent to escort the husband of the Chosen, Destini, and his partner."

"They sent a Mega and an Ultimate just to deliver two people?" Spencer asked, eyebrow raised.

"She asked for the best," Megadramon said, unfurling her wings a bit. "The regent delivered nothing less."

"Hey, I feel that," Spencer laughed, making a "finger gun" gesture.

"If we're all done flirting with ourselves," Jeremiah snapped, "I'd like to find my wife. Now."

"It would be an honor to escort you, blessed one," Megadramon said with a bow. "If you would allow me to carry you."

"Um, let's fill in the general first," Spencer said. "Wouldn't want any misunderstandings."

"That's fine," Jeremiah nodded, taking in several deep breaths.

"General Pentas?" The Garudamon stepped out of the aircraft at Spencer's call, but he didn't come any closer to the small gathering of monsters and humans.

"Are you two alright?"

"We're fine, General, fine," the blue-haired human assured him. "These guys are here because Destini asked them to come pick up Jer. We're gonna go meet her now."

"Are you sure…?"

"If Destini trusts them, I trust them."

"If it makes you feel any better," Spencer suggested, "we can ride in the plane with you, and these guys can still escort us that way. Just so you know there's no funny business."

"That sounds like a great idea," the Garudamon nodded. "Tell them I'll follow them."

"You can speak to me directly, General," ChaosDukemon said, a grin evident in her voice. "My bark is worse than my bite, I assure you."

"Ah, yes, well, that's all great. I'll see you in the sky. Come on, Spencer, Jeremy."

"Jeremiah," the black-haired human sighed. "How many versions of my name am I going to be called before the day's out?"

"We could always try Miah," Spencer could be heard cackling as the humans returned to the plane.

"Absolutely not!"

"Well, old friend, this is goodbye for now," Spruce said, turning to Shellmon. "I'll see you around."

"Of course! I'm always swimming around somewhere. Take care!"

"Think it's a good idea to bring a Digital aircraft into the city, after everything that's happened?" Megadramon asked as the three took to the sky.

"After all that's happened, I'm surprised there hasn't already been a Digital aircraft flying in," ChaosDukemon said with a humorless laugh. "But this is the best course of action for the Chosen to be reunited, which, may I remind you, is priority one."

"True…"

"Besides, if that daft mayor hears about his general making a friendly visit to our city, and nothing going wrong, _and_ handing two of the Chosen to us, that's _got_ to make him stop all these blasted attacks."

"If it doesn't, I'm afraid nothing will," Spruce said.

"Either way, I think one of us should fly ahead to let Her Excellency know we've got a visitor, before one thing leads to another…"

"I'll do it," the Devidramon volunteered. "I can fly faster than any blasted aircraft. Besides, if anything goes wrong… You two are more powerful than me."

"Don't push yourself, friend," Megadramon said.

"Good luck," ChaosDukemon nodded as Spruce took off at full speed. The remaining two took up positions, one on each side of the plane, and flew at a steady pace with the cockpit.

"Can't help but love those silver rivers," the dramon finally shouted after many minutes of silent flying. "Water just looks so gorgeous from way up here."

"I concur," her fellow knight called back. "It's a shame we don't go past the mountains much anymore. This whole area is truly exquisite."

"Do you want to take a day off and hike the hills around Subter City? I mean, when the war is called off."

"That would be fantastic. I'll bring my _soda._ "

"I could use a good _soda_ right now," the dragon Digimon laughed.

"Shh, what's that?"

"I don't see-"

Before she could utter another word, a red energy beam launched from the forest below and tore into the aircraft. The two knights backed away from the heat of the beam, just in time to avoid a second blast.

"What's going on?" Megadramon asked as the two glanced at the ground.

"I'll get to the bottom of this," ChaosDukemon said. "You catch that plane."

"Ah, there's just one problem… There is no plane."

"What?" The Dark Knight Digimon spun around in midair, searching for the aircraft. She expected it to be falling to the ground, giving off smoke or, in the worst-case scenario, bursting into flames, but it was nowhere to be seen. No debris, no fire, nothing. "How…?"

"We've got to find them!"

"There's no need for that," a third voice laughed. Both Digimons' muscles tensed at the sound.

"You…!" ChaosDukemon prepared her lance and spun around. Before she could strike, she was hit from behind by another red beam, and everything went black.

\/\/\/\/\/

"Here's your pay for the day, Ellowin," Reggie said, handing the human a bag full of coins.

"Why so much? I mean, not that I'm complaining."

"Only three of us showed up today," the Tyrannomon shrugged. "So the pay gets split three ways. That's how we do things in this town. If somebody wants to skip work, fine, let them skip, they don't even have to tell me. Their share of the pay goes to someone else. But we'll be happy to welcome them back the next day, if they're ready."

"Wow," Ellowin laughed. "That wouldn't work where I'm from."

"Oh no?"

"Nah, everything is set up in these rigid structures. You've got to bend over backwards and kiss everyone's… You know what… Just to get a job in the first place. And once you've got one, you're basically just a fruit they squeeze for every drop of juice they can get before you leave for something else or they throw you away. And just trying to call out for one day is a guilt trip and a panic attack thrown into one."

"Really?" Reggie whistled. "You've been dealing with that?"

"Not recently," she shook her head. "I've been working with my grandfather, maintaining his shop. It's a lot better than any other job I've had. Then again, I'm the only one in my family who still gets along with him, so that makes it easier."

"Ellie, I'm hungry!"

"Oh yeah, don't forget the rest of your ugly-carrot ramen," Reggie said with a smile, sliding a plastic container to her from across the bar.

"You put it away?" Ellowin lifted the lid on the container and let the Botamon have at it. "I thought you ate the rest of this hours ago."

"It was tempting, don't get me wrong," he laughed. "But I'm sure my tiny friend would rather have it."

"Ooh, it's still hot," Ryu cheered once he swallowed his first mouthful of noodles. "Wha…? Whoa!"

"What's wrong, Ryu? Oh!"

Between bites, the tiny Botamon was enveloped in white light, just about the time Ellowin's Digivice began to beep furiously. She glanced at the screen, which only showed a mishmash of lines and numbers. Soon the light faded, leaving a larger pink blob without the thick fuzz it had once had.

"Ryu, you evolved to Koromon!"

"Yay!" Ryu jumped up and down in excitement, his long ear-appendages swaying in midair each time he descended. "I grew a little! Thanks for the food, Reggie!"

"Don't mention it, little guy, it was Ellowin who cooked it."

"I'm so proud of you," Ellowin said, catching the Koromon in midair and squeezing him tight.

"Aww, that makes me happy. Let's go home and eat a bunch to celebrate!"

"Sounds like a good idea. We'll get more food at the shop, too." Ellowin turned around to give her boss a lazy salute. "Thanks for everything, Reggie. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Lookin' forward to it!"

After a quick convenience store run, the two made their way back to the den of the three Meramon. Cinder and Conley, fresh from their long shifts at the quarry, were seated on their stone "chairs" watching television, while Lux was squeezed into his usual little cubby, reading and smoking.

"Hey Big Flame," Ellowin greeted, not paying much attention to the fiery Digimon until she put away the frozen foods she had purchased. "How's your day been?"

"I did nothing and I have no regrets," Lux chuckled. "Oh hey, congrats on evolving, Ryu."

"Thanks!"

"We don't get greetings?" Conley asked.

"I was getting there," the human said, sticking out her tongue. "Hey… Big Flame, what are you doing?"

"Nothing," the Meramon shrugged, taking a drag from the cigarette in his metal holder. "I thought we established this already."

"I'm talking about that." She pointed her index finger to the cigarette. "Mer… Lux, that's bad for you."

"I don't have lungs, young one."

"I don't care, it's bad for everyone. And it smells disgusting."

"Here here," Cinder said.

"To each their own, I suppose."

"Can you at least not do it around Ryu? I want him to grow up healthy."

"Ah…"

"Look at who's bossy, so early in the evening," Cinder chuckled, earning the glare he was used to getting from the human.

"Ellowin, are you planning on staying here?" Conley asked. "I mean, we don't mind you crashing on the spare mattress, but don't you want your own place?"

"I just thought…"

"Ellowin," Lux began slowly, sitting up and putting out the cigarette. He stared into her eyes, hesitating for a moment. "I've been thinking about this for a while now. I like you. I like Ryu, too. I don't know if we really met in a past life or not, but… Either way, we're strangers. I want to help you - that's why I brought you here in the first place. But… I don't have any responsibility to you, and… Well, I just think it would be best if you talked to Toucanmon about getting your own house."

"I get it," Ellowin nodded, her voice breaking. "I'm sorry." She turned and ran through the doorway, followed by the bouncing Ryu.

"Ellie, wait!"

"Ellowin!"

She could hear Conley telling his roommate to give her space. The brunette shook her head, convincing herself not to turn around and run back to someone who didn't know her. She ran through the subterranean streets, letting her tears well up and blur her vision, not minding which direction she was going. Eventually, tired of running, tired of moving, she sat with her back against the stone wall and let her tears pour. Ryu, not sure what to tell her, squeezed in against his partner's shin.

"Ellie, I'm sorry," the Koromon finally said. "I don't want you to feel bad. I miss Mer, too… I miss Leo and Luna and Tsukaimon and all our friends. But they've been gone for a really long time now… And I haven't seen them since. I feel blessed to have him back in my life, even if he doesn't remember us. But I understand how torn-up you are right now. You've waited… too long."

"Ryu…" Ellowin picked him up by the sides and held him close to her neck as she lifted her legs up and bent them at the knees.

"I retain my memories when I reach the end of my lifespan. My data doesn't scatter to be reused by the world. I'm still just as much me as I was when we first met… Give or take some life lessons. But that's only because we found each other. We formed an unbreakable bond. Ellie, all that time I spent feeling incomplete, before you guys showed up? All the time I was waiting, searching for someone, it wasn't August. I was waiting for you."

"Don't say that," she sobbed, burying her tear-streaked face in the top of the pink blob she called her partner. "You're Auggie's Digimon! You always have been!"

"I know you miss your brother, and your best friend. And I wish I could bring them back, because I know nothing would make you happier. I just… I just hope you remember that you still have me."

Ellowin lifted her head and wiped her tears off of the Koromon before staring into his soft, pink eyes. She felt as if her heart has gotten jammed in her throat, cutting off her air, making it almost impossible to breathe, so much as speak.

"I could never forget you, Ryu."

"Never?"

Sobbing, she closed her eyes against fresh tears and shook her head.

"Not in a thousand years."


End file.
